To The Moon And Back
by secret2me2
Summary: They meet when they're both in bad times in their lives. They unintentionally turn out to be helping each other through the hardships they're facing. As soon as they start to get to know each other, his past comes back to haunt him. His reaction to that, however, turns out to be hurting more than just himself. But she's not one to talk, she has her fair share of the troubles too.
1. The Abandoned Park

**My first story! Fingers crossed that it'll be a good one and you will like it;)**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or any characters I didn't make up.**

 **And now without further ado...**

 **Ally's POV**

"Leave me alone, Scott! I don't need your explanation, I've seen enough!" I exclaimed as I tried walking as fast as I could with my short legs away from him. "Babe, you don't understand. I wasn't cheating on you!" he tried grabbing me by the waist. I evaded his arms and stopped walking keeping a respectable distance between us. He smiled and came closer to kiss me. I put my hands on his chest and pushed him away, "No, no, no, I'm not forgiving you. We've been together for 2 years and you go behind my back and cuddle with your 'assistant' then tell me it's nothing when I catch you doing it?" keeping one hand on his chest I adjusted my hoodie around my face to make sure no one but him can see my face, the last thing I need is paparazzi capturing this moment and spreading "Ally Dawson Fights With Longtime Boyfriend In Abandoned Park" to the world. "It IS nothing! I was just comforting her because she was sad her pet died! It's just a misunderstanding!" Scott tried to cover up his actions.

He leaned down and whispered in my ear, "Besides, you wouldn't want to throw away everything we had for the past 2 years just because of this silly misunderstanding now would you, Ally?" I stuttered,"W-well no-o, b-but ho-how can I-I be sure this was just a one-time thing?" He smirked," Trust me, baby, now come here and give me a kiss." I leaned in and kissed him. Maybe he's right, I'm just being silly. I need to trust him more. "Now I need to get back to work since you interrupted me earlier." he smiled. I nodded,"Sorry about that, I need to work on my trust issues. I'll see you tonight." He cringed, "Sorry, babe, tonight's guy's night out. Rain check?" I sighed, "Of course, where are you going tonight?" "A few bars downtown, you know, the usual," he shrugged. "Okay, see you tomorrow." A final kiss and he was gone.

I looked down as I turned in the opposite direction to take a walk. Nobody comes to this abandoned park anymore. Not that I'm complaining. It's a place for me to get away from work, paparazzi, and Scott to think about things peacefully. I feel comfortable knowing I'm the only one here in this entire park. Well almost the only one...

I let out a yell as I bumped into someone and lost my balance. Strong arms wrapped around my waist to stop my fall. I looked up and saw a guy about 6-foot tall in a gray hoodie and sunglasses holding me. I cleared my throat and stood up straight. His arms fell to his sides as he smirked at me. "I-I'm sorry, I wasn't looking, I thought I was the only one here. I'm Ally." I extended my hand for a handshake, but he just adjusted his hoodie trying to hide his blonde hair but some strands failed to stay put. "You still introduce yourself even though you're a famous singer, wow. You don't see me telling you my name because I bet you already know it." he took his sunglasses off. I smiled, "Austin Moon, the famous teen heartthrob everyone swoons over just because he can sing and has a 6-pack." "I'm flattered you took the time to look at my pictures and noticed my built body, but I have to say, pictures don't do you justice for they don't show your real beauty. You look prettier in person." his smirk stayed plastered on his face.

I let out a fake laugh, "Don't try to flatter me, I'm taken. And even if I wasn't, you would be my last choice." He laughed, "Oh I know you're taken, the media knows everything, but that boyfriend of yours you argued with a few minutes ago would be anybody's last choice with a brain as small as his." "W-what? You saw us fight?" my mouth was dry. "I was taking a walk in an abandoned park where I thought I was alone to enjoy some peace and quiet, but no, an annoying couple had to have an arguement today. And you're an idiot for forgiving him." he said. "Y-you don't know him like I do. He has a good side." I defended my boyfriend. "Does he really? Because cheating on his girlfriend doesn't support that." he tilted his head in confusion.

"He didn't cheat! It was just a misunderstanding!" I exclaimed.

"Was it?"

"Yes it was because I didn't trust him which is something I need to work on." I crossed my arms.

"Does he really deserve your trust?"

"We've been together for 2 years, so yes he does."

"What if he has been cheating on you this whole time, and you found out only now?"

"He said he didn't, so I believe him."

Austin whistled as if impressed, "A liar and a cheater, he's a catch"  
I was fuming, "You know what? I don't need to defend my relationship to you! You can't even commit to one, so why question my decisions?" He let out a small chuckle, "Maybe I don't want to waste my time on people who are just using me for my fame like you, maybe I'm just waiting for the one." I nodded with a sweet smile, "You do that while I leave and go have fun with my boyfriend." "You can't. He's got guy's night out. Does he go out with his friends often?" he asked. "He started hanging out with them more a couple months ago, but I Don't see how this is any of your business." I crossed my arms. "How often?" he pressed.

I sighed and replied, "About 3 nights a week, sometimes more." "Exactly what proves that I'm right. See you later, Ally Dawson." he smirked. I grit my teeth, "Goodbye" and walked away. My phone rang in my pocket, so I took it out. Looking back while I put the phone to my ear I noticed that Austin left as well. "Hello?"

"Ally Dawson. How have you been?" the head of my record label, Mark, asked.

"Hey, Mark, I'm good. What's up?"

"This Saturday I'm hosting a party at my mansion, important people are going to be there, so I'm inviting my best recording artists to be there. You think you can make it?"

"Yeah sure, I'll be there, no way I'm going to miss one of your famous parties," I laughed.

"You can bring a date if you'd like."

"I'll see about that, thanks."

"Good, see you then."

"Bye," I called out before hanging up. I looked at my phone and sighed. Will Scott agree to come with me? I'm his girlfriend, I doubt he'll pass up an opportunity to show me off to everyone. With a satisfied nod, I walked out of the park.

 **First chapter! I hope you liked it! I'll update this story as soon as I can.**

 **Until then, bye!**


	2. Mark's Party

**Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or any characters I didn't make up.**

* * *

 **Ally's POV**

"Come on! You tell me that I never invite you to these things but when I do you say you're busy?!" I cried. Scott put down his glass and stared intensely at me with his cold blue eyes, "Not my fault you always seem to organize your stupid events to be on the same nights as my bar outings!" I slumped down in my chair and crossed my arms stubbornly, "You already went out with your friends 3 times this week! Can't you cancel?"

He abruptly stood up, his chair slamming against the wall behind him, and leaned his hands on the table, "I won't cancel anything now. I already abandoned my friends to have dinner with you tonight and so far, you're making me regret it." I stood up and collected whatever patience I had left in me, "We haven't been on a date for 2 months until tonight. Is it my fault I want to spend time with my boyfriend?!"

"This stupid excuse of yours keeps getting more ridiculous every time you say it. I have friends who I like spending time with because they don't criticize everything I do," He glowered. "You always say that no matter what! You have a girlfriend who you need to spend time with to keep your relationship! I wouldn't have to tell you to stop doing things if you just did everything the right way! I'm done. Leave my house right now and don't you dare ever come back again," I fought back.

He glared at me, "Fine! I'll leave. But you'll be the one begging for me to take you back." He stormed past me toward the door and slammed it after leaving. I took a deep breath. Should I feel happy that I finally left someone who never made time for me or sad because I just ended a 2 year relationship? I cleaned up whatever was left from dinner and washed the dishes before going to my room. I sighed when I noticed a framed photo of us together when we went on a skiing trip a year ago. We looked so happy. What changed?

I took the frame and put it in a drawer in my dresser. The last thing I need is things that remind me of him. I took a shower to clear my head and by the time I went out I felt better. I took off my robe to reveal my red and white polka dot pajamas and crawled into my bed.

* * *

 _Saturday night…_

I looked over my appearance for the last time before leaving to attend Mark's party. I nodded approvingly at my figure-hugging red dress and softly curled hair with natural makeup. I turned to my best friend, Trish, for her approval.

She laughed, "You look gorgeous, Ally. That jerk, Scott, would be begging on his knees for you and not the other way around." She didn't really like Scott; she always told me to leave him before he hurts me and was quite happy when I told her about what happened. I smiled, "Thanks, Trish, for doing my makeup for tonight." She looked at me expectantly. I laughed, "and for doing my hair." She stared at me again. "And for choosing my clothes! Happy?" I said. "Very much, and you're welcome," she replied.

I laughed as I went over to the front door, "You sure you don't want to come with me? It's going to be so much fun." She shrugged, "Eh, not really. I need a break from all this meeting famous people thing. I don't know how you do it, Ally." I giggled as I opened the door. "Plus, I'll be waiting for you to come back so you can tell me any juicy things that happened at the party," she smiled. I left for my car after some final goodbyes. Good thing I know exactly where Mark lives or I'd be late.

* * *

 _At Mark's party…_

I walked around a bit talking to some of the people I knew and introducing myself to new ones. I laughed as I said goodbye to someone before turning around to continue my roaming across the big hall. I fixed my necklace as I walked before bumping into something. I caught my balance before falling and embarrassing myself and looked up and groaned. It wasn't something. It was someone.

"What are you doing here?!" I hissed at the tall blond in front of me. He smirked, "You still don't look where you're going? Interesting." I crossed my arms and glared at him, "What are you doing here?" He dropped the smirk and glared back at me, "I'm not here for you if that's what you think. Mark invited me because he wanted to invite his best recording artists to this party." I gasped, "You're in this label too?!" He laughed, "Of course I am, princess," he retorted, "but I don't suppose you knew that because princesses like you don't care about anything other than themselves." I snapped, "Don't call me princess." He glared at me, " Sorry, I'm not good at taking orders. And be happy we were never forced to work together or hell would've broke loose sooner with an attitude like yours." I said, "I wouldn't work with you if you were the last recording artist in the world because of your careless attitude."

Austin didn't have time to respond because Mark walked up to us. "Ausin, Ally! Good to see you made it! I hope you're enjoying the party," he laughed. Austin shook Mark's hand, "Mark! Awesome party. I knew your amazing party planning skills wouldn't disappoint us as always," Austin said the last part while looking at me with a fake sweet smile. I cleared my throat, "Hey, Mark. Austin's right. This party is pretty incredible because of your excellent taste in music." Mark laughed before leading us to an empty corner, "Listen, so your producers and I have been talking about something for a while and now we agreed that it would be great publicity for the label."

Our confused expressions urged him to tell us more, "We want you both to make a duet album together as a Valentine's Day special!" My mouth went dry as Austin's eyes widened. "U-us? Together? On a duet album?" I stammered. Austin stayed quiet but I knew he was thinking the same as me. Mark nodded excitedly, "Yes! It would help you both in publicity matters and our audience has been demanding an album from both of you together! You wouldn't want to let down your fans, would you? So what do you say?" I stuttered and looked at Austin, who was doing the same, and then looked at Mark.

"Um-I-I…"

* * *

 **Chapter 2 is up! I hope you liked this one and review to let me know what you think!**


	3. Act Professional

**Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or any characters I didn't make up.**

* * *

 **Ally's POV**

I shuffled out of my car to my front door clumsily and unlocked the door. It's late, so I guess Trish is sleeping now. I'll just tell her everything that happened at the party in the morning. I took off my heels and went into the living room where surprisingly I found Trish watching TV. "Why aren't you asleep by now? It's late and you love sleeping," I said with a smile. "Well hello to you too. We're both not sleeping until you tell me everything," she smiled. She patted the spot next to her on the couch, and I dropped my shoes and took a seat.

"Tell me everything from the start until you opened that door a few minutes ago," she hugged a small pillow to her chest as she listened intently to my story. I poured everything out until she interrupted me with a squeal, "Ally, you met Austin Moon?!" I laughed, "I met him a few days ago when I bumped into him." She looked mad, "And you didn't tell me?! How dare you? Anyway, tell me, is he as nice as people say he is?!" She changed her tone to an excited one.

"Austin? Nice? In your dreams. He's the rudest person on earth with his stupid sarcastic comments," I scowled. She looked shocked, "What? But he's always so sweet and polite in his interviews." I put my hand on her arm, "I don't know what interviews you've seen, but in real life he's a nightmare." She laughed, "That could be part of his bad boy persona, or that he just really hates you; you can be a bit sarcastic sometimes."

I rolled my eyes, "And guess what Mark asked me to do?" She nodded at me to continue. "He asked me to make a duet album with Austin as a Valentine's Day special." She giggled at my gloomy mood, "And did you accept?" I exclaimed, "I had to, Austin kept talking about acting professional and saying that I'm not a good artist if I can't act professional, so I wanted to prove him wrong! And now I have a meeting Monday morning with them to talk more about the album!"

She burst out laughing, "I'm sorry, I can't help it! You and the person you hate have to work on a love album together!" I glared at her. "Oh come on, maybe you'll actually find out that Austin is better than that idiot you dated. Plus, Austin is a genius in music, he's gonna help make this album amazing with his ideas," she calmed down. "This is Austin we're talking about, a dead walrus would be a better boyfriend than him. And no, I doubt Austin is good at making his own songs even though I've never heard any of his work," I said. She rolled her eyes at me.

"Speaking of boyfriends, Dez is coming home next week and I want you to meet him," she smiled. Dez is her boyfriend of two years coming home from college, I never met him because I was always busy with work when he visited. I nodded, "Sure, just tell me when and where and how should I dress and I'll be there." She replied, "Friday night at this new fancy restaurant. And you should probably know that he's bringing his friend to meet me, so it'll be like a double date too." I shrugged, "Sure, I'm not looking for someone right now, but maybe I'll like him and something happens."

* * *

 **Austin's POV**

I opened my front door and laughed when I saw who was there. "Dez, you're back! How are you, man?" I smiled and let him in. He took a seat on my couch and replied, "I'm great. How have you been?" I sat next to him, "I've been good. So tell me, what brings you here?" He leaned back and answered, "I wanted to tell you that I finally want you to meet my girlfriend at dinner on Friday." I nodded, "Sure, I'll come. Any specific things I should be aware of before meeting her?" He laughed, "Just that she's a bit feisty, so I'd be careful of what I say in front of her. And that she's bringing her friend to meet me, so you'll kinda have a date as well." I shrugged, "Eh, whatever. I don't really want a relationship right now, but I'll give it a shot."

"That's what I want to hear! So have you been working or planning any projects lately?" he asked. "I have been auditioning for several movies, but I still didn't get any replies from them, and I will be working on a Valentine's special duet album with another artist from the same label as me," I informed. "Which artist?" Jace questioned. "Ally Dawson," I growled. "You don't like her, do you?" he laughed. "She's an extreme pain in the ass," I said with a blank face. "Why did you agree to do this then?" he asked. "I'm always about acting professional and I couldn't let my fans down. Also, I like a challenge," I smirked. He sighed, "This is gonna be an interesting ride."

* * *

 _Monday morning…_

 **Ally's POV**

I walked into the small conference room with a heavy sigh. I'm gonna have to see him today. I checked my phone a bit while waiting for Austin and Mark to get here. They entered at the same time and I put my phone away. "Good morning," I smiled cheerfully. Mark was the only one polite enough to reply with a 'good morning' as cheerful as mine. Austin took a seat across of me, and Mark sat at the head of the table. "Let's get into business," Mark announced, "you know about the theme of this album, but can you deliver its message perfectly together? Because I can sense that you don't like spending time with each other."

We both nodded. "Sure, we can put aside our differences and make great songs if we can act professional. I am professional about my work, but I don't know about him," I nodded my head towards Austin who was scoffing at my comment. "I'll have you know, princess, I take my career seriously, so your attitude won't affect me whatsoever," he narrowed his eyes at me. Mark interrupted our little banter and said, "We need you both to write ten to twelve duets for this album together, so you have to get to know each other and give me great songs by January 10th or a lot of people will be disappointed, including me."

"Of course! We promise we won't let you down, Mark. Right, Ally?" Austin turned his head towards me with a fake smile. "Absolutely. Expect the best songs on your desk by January 10th," I said with a tight smile. Mark nodded, "That's what I like to hear. Now get to work, you have less than a month to give me great songs before we start recording." He picked his stuff up and left leaving me… and Austin.

We glared at each other for a while before Austin broke the silence, "Look, princess, I don't want to work with you as much as you don't want to work with me, but we promised a lot of people and we both hate letting our fans down. So here's a deal: I do my part of the job, you do your part of the job, we make a great album, we make everyone happy, and we never have to see each other again as long as we focus on music and only music." I nodded, "Perfect, the faster we finish, the faster I get to not see you."

"I believe we have an agreement. Meet me at the studio tomorrow morning so we can start," Austin said before standing up. I stood up, "Okay, bye now," before walking out.

* * *

 **So, here's chapter 3! I hope you liked it and review please so that I can know your thoughts**


	4. First Writing Session

**Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or any characters I didn't make up.**

* * *

 **Ally's POV**

I looked at my watch for the 50th time in the past hour. He's late to our first writing session. How professional of him. The door suddenly opened and an angry looking Austin walked in. "Nice of you to finally show up," I gave him a fake smile. "I had a rough morning, so I'd appreciate it if you kept your witty comments to yourself for a while," he snapped. I frowned, "Is everything okay?" He sat down on the leather couch the studio had and muttered, "It's none of your business." I regret caring now. I tried to hide my hurt expression by turning around and facing my laptop.

I cleared my throat, "While I was waiting for you I worked on a melody a little, tell me what you think." I played the part that I had recorded on my laptop for him while I moved from my chair to the couch next to him and put my laptop on a small table in front of us. He picked up an acoustic guitar and played in harmony to the music. He nodded when it ended and said, "It's good. We just need a little beat for the chorus." I replied, "We have to finish the background music before putting lyrics in." We shared ideas, changed some things, and surprisingly we didn't argue. Two hours later, we had the perfect song. Well minus the lyrics.

"I have to say, I'm impressed someone like you can actually make a good song, princess," he commented. "I won't reply because I would like to maintain the peace we had before your stupid comment," I replied. "Do you have any ideas for the lyrics?" I asked. "I do have an idea about what they should be about," he answered. A while later, we only had half the chorus decided. I looked through my songbook for ideas while Austin tried to put down more lyrics on the notebook we were using. _"Look out now, don't take one more step,"_ Austin sang. I abruptly looked up from my songbook and looked at him with a shocked expression, "Whoa, what was that?" He looked confused, "Um…a line for the chorus? Is it that bad?" I shook my head, "No, no, it's amazing. It's just that I didn't think you could actually-" He interrupted, "Sing? I didn't sign the contract to this label just because I like using pens, princess." I looked down, "I know, I'm sorry. I didn't know you would sound like that."

"You're not the only who was surprised when they heard the other person sing," he smirked. I looked up, "Excuse me?" He shrugged, "You wouldn't think a person as tiny as you would be able to sing smoothly through these notes, but you did." I sighed, "I'll take that as a compliment. Now can we focus on the song please?" I picked up my songbook once again before Austin groaned, "We've been working for hours, my brain can't come up with lyrics anymore. Can't we just call it a day?" I closed my songbook and agreed, "I'm tired too, but we have to finish as much as we can in one session because tomorrow I have an interview and next week is Christmas and the new year, so we won't be able to write together."

He nodded, "We can work on more songs separately and finish this one after tomorrow and come back the first Monday after New Years and discuss them before giving them to Mark." I packed up my stuff and stood up before turning to face him, "Sounds good, I'll see you on Thursday then." I almost reached the door and turned around, "You coming?" I smiled. He smiled too before standing up and picking his laptop and guitar up. I realized this is the first time we actually smiled at each other genuinely with no sarcasm or hatred. I liked that. A lot.

We walked through the lobby and Austin opened the door and motioned me to go out first, "Ladies first." I blushed at his gentlemanlike move and walked out. We went separate ways to our cars before he called me, "Ally?" I turned around, "Yeah?" He rubbed the back of his neck nervously before saying, "I'm sorry I snapped at you earlier, I was angry and I took it out on you." I smiled, "It's okay. I don't blame you." He smiled at me. We stared at each other for a while before we both cleared our throats, "Um…see you on Thursday," he awkwardly said. I nodded, "Bye." We got into our cars and drove off. Who was that talking? Was he really Austin? Maybe Trish is right, Austin is a nice guy. I nodded contently. This album making won't be so bad after all.

* * *

 _The next day…_

I walked out of my dressing room to go stand in my designated spot before entering the stage for the interview. "Ally, thank you so much for agreeing to do this on such short notice," the interviewer, Jessica Williams, said. I smiled, "Of course, you're my favorite interviewer after all." She laughed before going to her spot. "Ms. Williams, you're on in 30 seconds," a crewmember informed her. She walked to her stage expertly while I watched from my hidden spot.

"Hello everyone and welcome to my show! Today we have a special guest who I think everyone knows. Ally Dawson is here and we're gonna ask her all your questions and about yesterday's photos! So help me welcome Ally Dawson!" she cheerfully said. I smiled and waved to the cheering audience until I reached my seat. We hugged and sat down as the crowd calmed down. "It's been so long since you've been here. How have you been doing?" Jessica smiled. I giggled, "I've been doing great. I missed your hard questions that I always have trouble answering." She laughed, "Well today is gonna be harder than ever with the questions we have. So let's get to business."

A picture of me and Austin smiling at each other in the parking lot yesterday came up on the screen behind us. I winced. We didn't announce the album yet. "What's going here?" she pointed at the picture. "Two artists smiling at each other in front of the studio," I answered. She laughed, "I mean what's going on between you and Austin Moon? Are you dating?" I quickly exclaimed, "No! no, Austin and I are not dating. We barely got along when we first met." She looked unconvinced, "Then what's with all the smiling in this picture?" I gulped, "I said 'got' that's past tense."

"So why have you two been seen together this week?" she asked. "We are working on a Valentine's Day special album together so we've been hanging out," I shrugged. "What? You and Austin Moon are working on a collaboration?" she exclaimed. The audience started cheering. "Yes we are. This album is gonna be amazing and I can't wait for you guys to hear it," I smiled. "The songs are all duets, right?" she asked. "Yeah, I believe we sound good together so let's hope the songs turn out great," I laughed. Jessica smiled, "How does your boyfriend feel about you singing love songs with Austin?" I swallowed, "We actually broke up last week, we just didn't work out."

* * *

 _Later that night…_

"Are you meeting with Austin again tomorrow?" Trish asked me. "Yeah, let's hope he comes on time," I replied. My phone beeped in my hand. I looked at the text I got.

 _Babe, I miss you. I'm sorry I yelled at you. Please give me another chance. I promise you I'll change._

"Is that Scott?" Trish exclaimed when I showed her the text. "Yeah, he wants another chance. What do you think? Should I forgive him?" I bit my lip. Trish immediately said no but I texted him back.

 _ **One more chance. Only one.**_

 _That's all I need. Dinner tomorrow night?_

 _ **Sure. Pick me up at 8.**_

 _Sorry, babe. I got work until 7:45. I'll be coming straight from work. Can you meet me there?_

I sighed, but texted back.

 _ **Sure.**_


	5. Second Chances

**Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or any characters I didn't make up.**

* * *

 **Ally's POV**

I looked up when the door opened and Austin walked in with his guitar in its case and his laptop in its bag slung on his shoulder. "Good morning!" I chirped happily. I thought since Austin was nice the other day it wouldn't be so bad to try to become friends. It would sure make this album easier to make. Austin stared at me for a second before sitting on the couch muttering something about annoying morning people. I laughed before turning to face my songbook on the table in front of me.

"I got the rest of the song done, I just need your opinion," I spoke to him over my shoulder. "Let me see," he replied. I gave him my songbook and watched his expression as he read the lyrics, except, he had a completely still blank face the whole time. I frowned, "You don't like it?" He looked up at me for a moment before resuming his intense stare at my songbook. "It's not that I don't like it, It's just that I think the lyrics should be more… powerful or metaphorical or something," he said. I nodded glad to get an honest opinion and smiled, "Well, what do you have in mind?"

He looked at me before speaking in a harsh tone, "Calm down, princess, I'm just gonna change several things to try to make this song better." I frowned. I thought we were past the hatred. Well, if he wants to play that way, so do I. "Don't call me princess," I hissed. He smirked, "I repeat, I'm not good at taking orders." I huffed, "Just finish the song, so we can be done here." He took a pen out of his laptop bag and wrote a few things down and scratched some lyrics off. "Aaand done! Here, look at how much better it is now," he handed me the songbook with a smirk. I looked down at the lyrics and nodded, "It's good. Should we sing it through before calling it a day?" He grabbed his guitar and started playing the song.

I smiled when we finished, "It's amazing. One song down, eleven more songs to go!" Austin rolled his eyes at me, "Relax, princess, we have to work separately on these eleven songs, so don't think you're getting rid of me any time soon." I picked up my laptop and songbook and stood up, "I have to go because I have a date tonight and I want to get away from you as soon as possible, so that I don't have to see you for a week. Oh, the joy of not seeing you overwhelms me some times." He gave me a sarcastic laugh, "You have a date already? Didn't you break up with your boyfriend last week? Or did you lie to Jessica yesterday?" I grit my teeth, "Yes, we broke up last week, but I'm giving him another chance, and that's none of your business." I turned my back to him and opened the door to leave. "If you broke up with him because he cheated on you or doesn't care enough about you, he doesn't deserve a second chance," I heard Austin say behind my back. I replied, "He said he'll change." He laughed, "What a liar, and you're an idiot for forgiving him. Are you that desperate to be in a relationship?" I sighed and walked away. Now I don't have to see him for a week!

* * *

I fiddled with my bracelets as I waited for Scott to arrive. He's fifteen minutes late. I assume it's because he got held up back at work, so I decided to not hold this against him. The chair in across from mine was suddenly occupied by a smiling Scott. "Good evening, babe. I got you this," he handed me a single red rose. "Aw thanks, Scott," I smiled. "So, now that you've given me a second chance, I want to do my best to not ruin it. I'll tell you the rules from now," he said. Rules? What does he think this is? A football game?

"Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays are off limits. These are my guys' nights. You can have the other days to see me. And also, how come you didn't tell me about this album thing with Austin Moon?" he asked. "We weren't dating when I agreed to do it, I hope that's not a problem," I said. He gave me a tight smile, "Not a problem at all. Just tell him to back off my girl." I laughed and nodded, "Don't worry, I'll never go after a guy like him nor will he go after a girl like me." He took my hand and gave me a light squeeze.

* * *

 _The next day…_

I brushed my fingers through Trish's recently curled hair to soften its look before adding some hairspray to hold it. "Are you and Scott back together?" she asked. "Yeah, we're giving it a second shot to see if he can actually change," I replied. "What about your date tonight? Does he know about him?" she questioned. "I didn't tell Scott about tonight because it's not a date for me. I have a boyfriend, so why would I go on a date with another guy?" I answered.

"And done! You look beautiful, Trish!" I smiled. "Thanks! Now, we need to get going or Dez and his friend are going to be mad we're late," she warned. I laughed and took my purse from Trish's vanity and looked over my outfit one last time. I nodded in satisfaction at my white dress with long lace sleeves, beige heels, soft curls, and natural makeup. We exited Trish's house and got into her car. I'm anxious to see who Dez's friend is. Maybe he's nice and I can introduce him to Scott.

* * *

 **The next chapter will be the double date. I wonder what will happen there...**


	6. Surprises

**I need songs for Austin and Ally's album, so if anyone has one please PM me or put it in a review, but the songs have to be duets**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or any characters I didn't make up.**

* * *

 **Ally's POV**

"They should be here any second now," Trish muttered skimming through the parking lot for Dez's car. Dez and his friend are supposed to meet us in front of the restaurant so we can enter together, but they're a bit late. I chuckled at the situation remembering someone else who was always late too. "There is his car!" Trish exclaimed. I laughed, "Calm down. Why are you so jumpy?" She gave me a sheepish look, "I'm just nervous that you might not like him. I feel like he's the one, but I can't be with someone my best friend doesn't like." I smiled, "Trish, he must be a great guy since you love him so much, no need to worry." She nodded with a small laugh before turning to look for Dez.

"Trish, you look beautiful," was the first thing that came out of Dez's mouth once he saw us. Trish blushed and kissed her boyfriend as I looked around for the friend. "You must be Ally. Pleasure to meet you. Trish has told me so many things about you," Dez took my hand and kissed it. I laughed, "All good things I hope." He chuckled and wrapped his arm around Trish's waist, "Of course except with some interesting information." Trish looked up at him, "Where's your friend?" He replied, "He forgot his phone in the car, he's coming now," We nodded and started a small talk while we waited.

A few minutes later Dez exclaimed, "There he is! I won't bother introducing you to each other since you've already met." My jaw dropped at who was standing next to Dez and had a similar expression as me. "Austin," I said through gritted teeth. Austin ignored me and turned to Trish, "Trish, it's an honor to finally meet you." He kissed her hand as she giggled. I was surprised. Austin acted like a gentleman. He turned to me before giving me a fake smile, "Ally. I guess not seeing me for a day is too much for you that you had to see me again." I scoffed, "I'm here for Trish because she wanted me to meet Dez and his friend. You'd think a guy like him would have a decent friend, but no. He has Austin Moon."

Trish explained to a confused Dez, "They hate each other." He asked, "But aren't they working together?" I replied, "We are, but that doesn't mean we're fond of each other. He has poor social skills that prevent us from having a decent talk." Austin gave me a blank look, "I'm the most sociable person in this conversation, unlike you, who has a problem in manners." Our bickering got louder until Trish yelled, "Okay! Stop! Ally can I talk to you for a minute?" She pulled me to the side, "Listen, Dawson, I hang out with Scott for you even though I hate him, so you better do the same to me. I want this night to be special with no arguments, so can you please be nice to each other just for tonight?" I sighed, "Fine. But I'm not happy about it."

* * *

 **Austin's POV**

Dez looked at me with a serious face before speaking, "You will not ruin this night for me. Understood? Tonight is something very special to me and I would rather you not fighting with Ally and destroy this date." I nodded. "Good. Now remember, be nice to her," He whispered to me before the girls came back. "Austin," Ally said with a tight smile, "you look handsome tonight." Apparently she liked my black jeans and white button up with the sleeves rolled up to my elbows. "Ally, you look beautiful," I replied. It wasn't a lie. She did look incredible. "Shall we go in?" Trish asked. This is gonna be a long night.

* * *

We finished our dinner, now waiting for desert, before the girls excused themselves to the bathroom. The night has gone smoothly, no arguments. Ally turned out to be not that bad. She would be awesome as a friend. Or more… I cursed myself at this though and shook my head. She has a boyfriend and we need to be professional. Never mix business with pleasure. Learned that the hard way. "So, do you like her?" Dez asked. "Trish or Ally?" I replied. "Trish." I nodded, "Yeah, she has a strong personality and a feisty attitude. No wonder you like her so much." He laughed, "Back off she's mine. What do you think of Ally now?" I shrugged, "You know, I think I underestimated her a bit at the beginning. She turned out to be bearable." He chuckled, "Just know, Austin, she's better than the others." I was confused by what he said and was about to ask until the girls came back.

"Desert is still not here?" Ally asked as she took her seat across from me. I shook my head, "No, it should be here soon." Trish spoke, "So, Austin, Ally, how's the album coming?" Ally took a sip from her drink before replying, "It's coming great. We only have one song finished, but we're working on others separately. Which reminds me," she turned to me, "Austin, any progress?" I nodded, "Yeah, I started working on a song the morning. What about you?" She cleared her throat, "Not really. I tried working on one today, but nothing came." I said, "It's okay. I'm sure something will come along. You have more time." We smiled at each other and looked into each other's eyes. Her eyes are beautiful. "Aww, Dez, look at them!" Trish's voice ended our moment. We both blushed as desert was served.

Dez shook a little next to me. "Dude, are you okay? You're sweating," I asked in a hushed voice. He looked at me with wide eyes, "Huh? What? No, I'm okay. This room is just a little stuffy." I nodded and sat back. We dug into our food before Trish gasped loudly. She was staring at her cake with wide eyes and her hands covering her mouth. Ally and I looked at each other in confusion. Dez swallowed and got up, "Excuse me. May I have everybody's attention please?" He kneeled down in front of a crying Trish and took something from the cake. It was a ring. An engagement ring. Ally and I look at each other with wide eyes before looking back at the shaking couple. "Trish, you're my light. You stole my heart and refused to give it back with your feisty personality." Everyone laughed before he continued, "I can't imagine my life without you, and I would like to have you there with me every step of the way. So, Trish De La Rosa," he took her hand, "would you make me the happiest man on earth and marry me?"

Trish shouted, "YES! A THOUSAND TIMES YES!" before tackling him with a hug and a kiss. We cheered and clapped with happiness for the couple. They pulled away and stood up thanking everyone. I got up at hugged Dez, "Congrats, bro. You're very lucky to have her." He laughed and thanked me before asking, "I know it's a bit early, but would you be my best man for my wedding?" I pretended to think for a second before answering, "Of course, man. How can I say no? But are you sure Elliot won't be mad?" He shook his head, "No, no. He can be the groomsman!"

* * *

 **Ally's POV**

"Oh my gosh, Trish, congrats! I'm so happy for you!" I hugged my best friend tightly. She laughed and thanked me before pulling away, "Ally, would you be my maid of honor?" I shrieked, "Absolutely! I can't wait! This is gonna be so much fun!" She laughed at me, "You're gonna have to spend a lot of time with the best man." I excitedly exclaimed, "I don't care who he is! I'm gonna be my best friend's maid of honor at her wedding!"


	7. Trust

**Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or any characters I didn't make up.**

* * *

 **Ally's POV**

I smiled at my cheerfully decorated home for Christmas. I spent the last 2 hours hanging lights on my tree. I looked at the clock above the fireplace. 2:30…What do I do now? I decided to take a shower and head to the studio to write some songs. Nothing I write at home is going to be a love song because of the Christmas spirit. I sighed and went to my bathroom to take a shower. I changed into black leggings, a red top, and a beige cardigan. I took my songbook, phone, and keys and left. I drove through the empty streets peacefully. No one was out at this time. People are home preparing for Christmas tomorrow.

My train of thought wandered to last night. We finished desert and left so that the happy couple can have some alone time to celebrate their engagement. Trish and Dez drove in her car and went to her place while Austin gave me a ride home. We sang along to songs the whole time. I smiled at his gentleman moves such as opening the car door for me and walking me to my front door. Austin isn't as bad as I thought. We could be friends if he kept this attitude. I'm still not sure I can trust him though. I did some research on him and turns out he bailed out on a duet deal with another singer a year ago, walked out on his parents, and vandalized a restaurant's manager's car because his food was late.

I parked outside the empty studio and walked in. I rummaged through my songbook as I headed towards the studio room we use. I let out a yelp as I lost my balance after bumping into something. Strong arms wrapped around my waist to stop me from falling. I opened my eyes and looked up to see Austin. We stared into each other's eyes for a minute before he cleared his throat and unwrapped his arms from my waist.

"Austin! What are you doing here?" I smiled. "I forgot my sheet music here. What are you doing here?" he replied with a smile like mine. "I came to work on some songs." He looked at me questioningly, "Why can't you just write at home?" I said, "My house is full of Christmas decorations. Nothing Valentine's related will come out." He laughed, "So, you're the type of person who goes all out for the holidays." I nodded and laughed, "If they're here, why not celebrate them? For some people Christmas is the only time of peace and happiness they have with their families." His smile wavered a bi before speaking, "Not for everyone."

I furrowed my eyebrows and was about to speak before he changed the subject. "I'm about to finish the songs I told you about, so I thought I could drop a copy off at your house so you can practice a little before next week. I'll be practicing alone too." I responded, "Yeah, sure. That's a great idea. We'll practice separately so that when we come back, we'll only need to sing them through. When should I be expecting your songs?" He thought for a minute before replying, "I'll have them ready by Wednesday." I nodded, "This is serious, Austin. Don't get distracted. How can I trust that you'll give them to me by Wednesday?" He said, "I promise I'll give you he songs Wednesday morning, okay?" I replied, "I'm trusting you on this. Don't let me down." He nodded, "I have to go meet up with Dez, so I'll see on Wednesday. Unless you decide to bump into me 'accidentally' again before that." I wanted to wipe that smirk off his face. "I'll see you then. Bye," I waved at him before continuing my way the studio. I wasn't sure if I could trust him, but this'll be a good test for him.

* * *

 _The next day..._

I opened the front door and smiled at the huge bouquet in front of me. "Merry Christmas!" he said. I laughed and took the bouquet before hugging him tightly. "Merry Christmas," I whispered. We broke the hug and he came in. We sat on the couch and cuddled. "I missed this," I murmured into his chest. Scott chuckled, "I missed you." We talked peacefully for a while until the Austin subject came up. "He's coming over to drop some songs off on Wednesday," I informed him. He nodded with a big smile, "That's great. You can rehearse a little before recording then." I looked up at him, "Really? So you're not bothered a guy is coming over to my house?" He squeezed my shoulders and replied, "It's business related and you already told me not to worry about him." I hugged him tightly, "You really changed!" He chuckled and spoke, "And guess what? Tomorrow you're invited for a Christmas dinner at my parents' house." My eyes widened, "But tomorrow's Monday. Isn't Monday off limit?" He looked serious, "Ally, you're my girlfriend, you shouldn't have special days to see me." I smiled. He changed. He's just like his old self now.


	8. Meet The Parents And The Lies

**Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or any characters I didn't make up.**

* * *

Scott parked the car and turned to Ally, "I know this is the first time you meet my parents, so please be nicer than usual to them, okay?" Ally frowned at him. What's that supposed to mean? That she's not nice? "And I might have told them some things that may not be true about our relationship but please go along with it." Ally sighed and nodded at her boyfriend. She opened her car door and went out after noticing that Scott wasn't going to be the gentleman type and open the door for her and walking with her to the front door. Ally walked hurriedly to Scott who was at the door already and rang the doorbell. Ally put on her sweetest smile when the door opened and a black haired, blue eyed woman stood behind it. "Scotty! I missed you sweetie! And I see your fiancée is here too," she smiled at Ally. Ally's face paled and her smile dropped. Fiancée? He told his mother they were getting married?!

Ally cleared her throat and smiled again shaking the woman's hand, "Mrs. Smith! Pleasure to meet you!" Scott's mom laughed and welcomed them in their cozy looking home. "Excuse me while I go call my husband," she said before walking up the stairs. Ally turned to Scott and sneered, "Fiancée? You told your parents we're getting married?" He responded, "My mom was bugging me about marriage so I kinda lied to her. Please just pretend like I proposed to you." Ally nodded. She had decided that this night was either gonna make them or break them.

Ally could hear everything his parents were saying upstairs because they were yelling. "Get down there and introduce yourself to your son's fiancée!" "I'm not going to introduce myself to a lying woman that cheated on him!" Ally turned to Scott once again, "So _I_ cheated on _you_ and lied to _you_ about it then _you_ gave _me_ one more chance and _proposed to me_?" Scott smiled, "Good so you're getting the hang of it." The older woman walked down the stairs with a frowning man on her tail. "Good evening, Mr. Smith. I am honored to meet you. I must say you have quite a cozy home," Ally tried to smile at the man that hated her. He shook her hand and said, "Thank you. We love the cozy feeling that comes with Christmas so we try to hold on to it as much as possible." Ally nodded, "As I see. I love the intricate detailing you did with the lights on the tree." Scott's dad smiled at her. Mrs. Smith announced, "Dinner!"

"So, Ally, Scott, when's the wedding?" his mom asked. Ally almost choked on her food before remembering his lie. Scott shrugged, "We're putting the wedding planning on hold for a while because we both have a lot of work right now." His dad seemed interested, "What kind of work do you do?" Ally smiled at him and said, "I'm a singer and songwriter. Right now I'm working on a duet album with another musician for Valentine's Day." He raised his eyebrows, "Is that musician the one you cheated on Scotty with? Because there are pictures of you two hugging on Friday." He was referring to the pictures of the goodnight hug Austin gave her after walking her to her front door that went viral. Mrs. Smith exclaimed, "Darrell! They moved on from that! They're in love and getting married!" She turned to face Ally, "Where's the engagement ring? I don't see it on your hand." Ally tried to smile, "Um, I forgot it at home." Mr. Smith mumbled something that made his wife scold him again.

"Believe it or not she's actually trying to convince me that we should just go to the church and get married right now and have the reception later because she wants to be my wife so much!" Scott lied with a laugh. Ally's jaw dropped. She couldn't take it anymore, "I'm done with these lies! You're making me look like a pathetic loser who takes everything for granted in front of your parents so they think I'm in love with you and you're just doing me a favor!" Scott fumed with anger as his mother asked, "What do you mean? How dare you talk to my son like that in front of me!" Ally stood up, "We are not engaged," she showed them her hand, "and he's the one that cheated on me, not the other way around." His father stood up, "You are a liar! I was right! I know my son and I know he would never do something like that!" Mrs. Smith and Scott got up as well. His mom argued, "You're so pathetic that you're actually trying to pin this on him!" Ally couldn't take it anymore, so she got her coat and turned to Scott, "I pity your parents for having a son like you. You've never done anything good in your life and lied to them about it. I don't blame them for not believing me, every parent wants to be proud of their child, but theirs is an empty, cold-hearted jerk." And walked out.

* * *

 _Wednesday morning…_

Ally read a book while she waited for the songs from Austin to arrive. She was anxious to see the songs, in a good way. She was excited to see him- the songs! Not him! Ally scolded herself for that thought as she raced to the door after she heard the doorbell ring. Her smile dropped when she opened the door. It was Scott, her ex-boyfriend. "What do you want?" she sneered. "Can I come in? he asked. Ally blocked the door and shook her heard no. "Please? I really need to tell you something," he begged. Ally sighed and opened the door wider for him to come in. They stood in the middle of her living room in silence. Scott was about to say something before Ally's phone rang. She picked it up and walked out of the room after glaring at him. The doorbell rang again, and because Ally was on the phone, Scott opened it.

Austin looked at the familiar face in front him trying to remember his name before the guy said, "Austin Moon! Nice to finally meet you! I'm Scott, Ally's boyfriend." They shook hands as Austin said, "Ally's told me so much about you." She did complain to Austin about him. "Is she here?" he asked. Scott looked behind him to see if Ally was done talking on the phone but she was still on the phone and she walked out to the backyard. "She's in the shower. Do you need anything?" Austin replied, "I just wanted to drop these songs off so she can rehearse a bit. Can you give them to her? And tell her I stopped by?" Scott took the papers from Austin's hands and nodded. "Thanks. Um, see you around," Austin said before backing up to his car and leaving. "Goodbye," Scott muttered and closed the door.

He looked at the papers in his hands before tearing them in half and hiding them under the couch cushions, a place he knew Ally never checks. "Who was at the door?" Ally asked him after she was done with her phone call. Scott shrugged, "Just some annoying paparazzi." Ally remembered why Scot was here and crossed her arms, "Why are you here?" He looked down, "I'm here to tell you that you can't be mad at me for lying to parents. They were doubting our relationship because of the rumors the media made." Ally nodded, "So you're here to tell me that my career is the one to blame for our breakup. My career has taken a lot of good things from me, but this one isn't. I'm thankful for that dinner because it opened my eyes and showed me what a low life person you are." His eyes narrowed, "You will regret these words." And left. Ally wasn't worried about him. Scott is all words and no action. She returned to her previous seat and waited for Austin.

* * *

 _Sunday night…_

Ally was mad at Austin for not fulfilling his promise. He told her she could trust him, and he ended up not showing up at all. She was going to give him a piece of her mind tomorrow at the studio. She wasn't mad just because he didn't give her the songs, but also because they both knew this was like a test to see if they could trust each other so that they can become friends. "Last time I ever trust a bad boy like him."

* * *

 **So this chapter doesn't have a lot of Auslly, but it will help move the story along. You won't be disappointed;)**


	9. This Isn't A Date

**Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or any characters I didn't make up.**

* * *

Austin was deep in thought as he drove through the streets towards the studio for their writing session. His head swarmed over to Wednesday morning when Scott opened the door for him. His breath tightened and his hands clenched on the steering wheel at the thought of another guy at her house. He felt confused. They're just starting to be friends and his mind and heart tell him he wants to be more. "She has a boyfriend, don't interfere," he muttered to himself. But something about that guy didn't make him feel good. He knew Scott will hurt her one way or another. Austin sighed, "Find a distraction and forget these feelings." He wasn't supposed to be the one chasing the girl. Girls chase him, but this specific girl is different. She's not like the rest. He shook his head and decided to let go of these thoughts. They're only meant to be friends and co-worker. Nothing more. Right?

He parked his car outside the studio and went in. "Good morning," he smiled at the receptionist who smiled back at him. He found their studio room and entered. "Good morning. I hope you practiced the songs I gave you," he smiled again. He wasn't typically a morning person, but he just felt energetic being around a person as perky as Ally. He stopped when he noticed her glare. "You mean the songs that you promised you would drop off but never did?" she sneered. "What?" he furrowed his eyebrows. "I trusted you to do one small thing and you never do it! It's not even that hard! Just drop the papers off at my house. But no, you completely forget about m-the songs!" Ally exclaimed, saving herself from saying 'me' right on time. "Ally, I did come over to your house Wednesday morning!" Austin defended himself. "I was home all morning that day and you never came!" Ally snaps. "You were home with your beloved Scott," he sneers. Ally looked down as she mumbled, "I wasn't with him." That topic was a little sensitive for her. It was a 2-year relationship with the man she thought she would end up with that ended. She hasn't even been able to vent her feelings out to Trish. Ally bottled these feelings up and pushed them to the back of her mind. Though she knew there will be a time where she breaks down if she continues to do so.

"Yes, you were. Don't lie," Austin snapped, "and you say I'm the liar." Ally's head snapped up, "How would you know if he was there? Were you the one at my house? Why do you even care if he was there?" Austin's mouth shut as he took a deep breath to not let any unnecessary information fly out of his mouth. "He was the one I gave the songs to." Ally shook her head, "Scott was at my house for 15 minutes and only once did the bell ring and it was a paparazzi, not you." Austin narrowed his eyes, "Do you trust his words?" She looked down mouthing 'no.' Austin looked at her like she was crazy, "Then how are you dating him?" Ally sighed, "This is not what we're talking about here." Sensing there was something wrong, Austin decided to not talk about her messed up relationship, "I know what happened to the songs. She looked at him in speculation. "When I came over to your house to drop the songs off, Scott answered the door, he said you were in the shower or something," Austin explained, "anyway, I told him to give the songs to you, but apparently he never did." Ally was red in rage. "I'm so sick of that son of a bitch!" she shouted. Austin's eyes widened, "Then why are you dating him?!"

Ally turned her back to him, "I'm not!" Austin noticed her voice cracking and cleared his throat, "Maybe we shouldn't any of the work today." She turned to face him once again, "What do you mean?" He shrugged, "We're both tired and angry, that wouldn't make any good songs. How about we just hang out later?" Ally smiled and nodded, "That would be great." He smiled at her, "Would you like to have dinner with me tonight?" Her eyes widened before he interjected, "As friends!" She responded, "See you then, Moon." She gathered her laptop and phone into her laptop bag and turned to him, "Walk me out?" He smiled and nodded picking his laptop bag and opening the door for her. They walked in comfortable silence as they exited the building. He walked her to her car and stood with her. She caught him off guard when she suddenly wrapped her arms around his neck in a tight hug. He relaxed and hugged her back burying his head in her neck. ' _This is what heaven must feel like_ ' they each thought to themselves. Heaven soon ended when Ally broke the hug after hearing a noise. They turned towards the direction of it and saw several paparazzi with their cameras focused on the two. "Oh dear," she muttered. "Prepare for the rumors," he laughed gently. She giggled and turned to face him, "Pick me up at 7." He raised his eyebrows and pointed at himself, "Now I'm picking you up?" She nodded, "Yes, you are. What are you? Afraid that I will find out what a terrible driver you are?" He smirked, "I'm picking you up tonight, but only to show you how awesome of a driver I am." She got into her car and teased, "We'll see about that." She closed the door and drove off. Austin walked to his own car and got in. He lightly banged his head on the steering wheel. Was he happy that Ally said that she wasn't dating Scott? Yes, he was. Was he going to take his chance and try to get her? Yes, he was. His smile only widened as he drove off thinking about his friendly date with her tonight.

* * *

 _Later that night…_

Ally checked her makeup once again before taking a seat at her couch waiting for Austin to come pick her up. She was so excited that she feels like she forgot all about her bottled up feelings from her recent break up. _'Take it slow, Ally, you just got out of a relationship'_ she thought. Austin being late to their chosen time was expected. He was late every morning to their writing sessions anyway. The clock read 7:01 when her doorbell rang. Ally jumped up in excitement. She calmed herself down and took a deep breath. ' _This isn't a date'_ she reminded herself as she opened the door to a handsome looking Austin. She looked at his black jeans and grey button up with the sleeves rolled up. ' _Classy and simple'_ she thought. He matched with her black skirt and grey top. "One minute late, Mr. Moon," she tapped on her small silver watch bracelet. "I got here at 6:59, but I was looking if there were any reporters around," he explained. He escorted her to his car and opened the door for her. "What a gentleman," she chimed as she got in. Austin bit his tongue as he closed her door and walked over to his side in an effort to not mention Scott. "Where are we going?" she turned towards him. "There is a new restaurant on the beach that I thought we could try, and then maybe a late night walk on the beach. Is that okay?" he gave her a quick glance. She smiled at him, "Sounds perfect." It's been a while since she's been to the beach. Scott didn't like it and never took her there for dates.

' _This isn't a date'_ he reminded himself for the 50th time that night. They had a nice comfortable talk until they reached the restaurant. They were shown to their table, which luckily faced the beach, and sat across from each other. "So, tell a little about yourself," Ally said as she took a sip from her drink. "What do you want to know?" he asked. She shrugged, "Your history." Austin laughed, "My history, wow. I suppose you mean my life story." She laughed along and nodded. "I grew up in Miami, I lived my whole life there actually. You always find my family doing something crazy and outgoing-" Ally interrupted, "Like what?" He smiled as he remembered the good times he had with his family, "Like setting up a family bungee jumping day." She had a soft smile on her face, "Do you still do that when you visit them?" Austin's face went blank as he swallowed, "Not really. My family was never the same after…" Ally sensed his discomfort and put her hand on top of his, "It's okay, you can tell me." He sighed, "After my dad walked out on us when I was 12." She gasped at that, "Oh my God, Austin, I'm so sorry." He shrugged, "It's not your fault. I don't really think about it much anymore." Ally bit her lip, "What happened after that?" Austin chuckled a little before replying, "What do you expect? My mom didn't have a job so I had to help her with money by working at a local supermarket. She is an amazing woman. She did everything she could to give me and my sister the best life." Ally nodded, "I can only imagine how incredible she is. What about your sister?" He said, "She was too young to understand what happened." Ally couldn't help herself from asking, "Do you want to meet your father?" He thought for a moment, "I hate that man so much that I don't consider him as my dad."

Austin shook his head, "Enough with the sadness. What about you?" Ally smiled, "I grew up in Miami as well. We lived in the countryside with a stable for our horses." Austin was surprised, "You rode horses?" Ally laughed and nodded, "I even had my own horse, Melody." He smiled at her dreamy look, "That sounds amazing." They continued their conversation and learned more about each other as they ate. They were in the middle of their walk on the beach when Austin asked, "How did you get into the music business?" Ally laughed, "I should have expected that conversation to come up since I'm with another musician. I loved singing back home so much that I decided to move to LA and make it my life. What about you?" Austin looked out at the dark ocean under the bright moon, "I used to sing my thoughts out after he left, my mom and sister enjoyed it because it relaxed them. I find great comfort in music so I moved to LA as well and chased after my dream." They stopped walking and turned to face each other, "I agree. Music takes me to another world and helps me solve my problems."

"I didn't want to say anything, but why did you dump that guy?" he asked about Scott. "He was selfish and self-centered. He also told his parents that I cheated on him and that we were getting married," she responded. Austin burst out laughing, "What?! Cheating?! Marriage?! If he's gonna lie at least make it a good one!" Ally laughed along with him, "You know, I never thought we'd actually be able to get along." He calmed down and agreed, "I know right, but as it turns out, you can be tolerated." Ally rolled her eyes at him and look at the ocean next to them. "Ally…" she heard Austin whisper. "Yeah?" she mumbled as she turned to face him. She was met by sparkling brown eyes that stared deeply into hers. Their gaze intensified as they started getting closer and closer. Their foreheads touched and breath quickened and they felt paradise approaching when…

* * *

 **To be continued…**


	10. Friendly Date

**I'm back! I changed a couple of things in the previous chapters so please go back and read them, they're important to the storyline. If you're too lazy to read them, I'll just tell you here:**

 **Dez is Trish's fiancé (not Jace) and Austin and Dez's other friend (who's gonna be the groomsman) is Elliot.**

 **Sorry for the change but this will really help the plot.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or any characters I didn't make up.**

* * *

 _"Ally…" she heard Austin whisper. "Yeah?" she mumbled as she turned to face him. She was met by sparkling brown eyes that stared deeply into hers. Their gaze intensified as they started getting closer and closer. Their foreheads touched and breath quickened and they felt paradise approaching when…_

Austin stopped moving and closed his eyes, "I'm sorry." He moved away and kept a respectable distance between them. "I'm sorry, I wasn't supposed to do that," he rubbed the back of his neck nervously. Ally looked at him, "It's not your fault. I was part of it as well." He shook his head, "But I'm the one that started it. You just got out of a long relationship and you need space, besides we're just friends." She nodded, "Yeah, friends." Both of them never hated that word more. "Can I ask you something?" she asked. He looked at her and nodded. "What's that small teddy bear in the cup holder near the gear shift for?" she smiled to break the tension. Austin smiled widely and replied, "My mom and sister gave that to me before I moved here so that I don't drive crazily because I'll remember them." Ally found Austin's love and care for his mom and sister extremely cute, "That's sweet. What's your sister's name?" They started walking back to his car as he answered, "Cassidy, but we all call her Cass." Ally said, "Does she still live with your mom?" He shook his head, "She's 20, so she got her own place, but she still lives a block away from my mom in case something happens."

She nodded and they walked in comfortable silence until they reached the car. Austin opened the door for her and closed it after she entered the car and went to his side. Austin turned on the radio as he backed away from the parking lot. Ally scrunched up her nose as she flipped to another channel, "That's so much better." He laughed and flipped it back, "I prefer this one." Their radio fight continued until a song they both liked was on. They sang along to the words as they had an amazing time. _"I'm too hot! Say my name you know who I am_ **(1),"** Austin sang loudly to make a point. Ally laughed and shook her head as she shouted over the music, "Not that hot!" Austin gasped as he kept his eyes on the road, "How dare you? I was named 2015's hottest male celebrity by Billboard **(2)**!" Ally replied loudly over the loud song, "And I was named 2015's worse singer, but that doesn't mean everybody agrees!" Austin abruptly turned the volume down and glanced at her before looking back at the road and spoke seriously, "What? People actually said that?" She was a bit shocked at how he reacted to that, "Yeah, apparently I can't sing the songs I think I can because my voice is weak and I require intensive vocal training." He said, "You don't actually believe that, do you?" Ally shook her head, "It's the media. They say everything to break you down, but you just have to ignore them. I mean, yeah I don't have the strongest voice in the world, but I don't think it's that bad. Every singer has a problem with haters." Austin nodded, "I agree. I have people that are telling me that I'm a bad role model because of what I've done." She looked at him, "What have you done?" He announced, "We're here!" Ally looked out to see that they have reached her home, "Would you like to come in? We can look for the songs and have some coffee." Ally really wanted to know what he's done and wasn't about to let him get away with it.

They walked out of the car and went to the front door. Ally unlocked the door and welcomed him in. Austin looked at the cozy looking home. The front door opens to a medium sized foyer with wooden stairs leading to the second floor on the far end. Double sliding door frames were on each side, the right entrance leading to the living room, the left leading to the kitchen. Ally gave him a tour around the first floor. The left doorframe led to a big kitchen with white marble countertops and wooden cupboards. A big island stood in the middle of the room. The right doorframe led to a cozy living room with a long 'L' shaped white couch, green and brown embroidered pillows were scattered along the couch with a green throw blanket on the couch, big windows, and a dining table on the far end. The couch's back faced the doorway. They settled on the couch and turned to face each other.

"Since you didn't answer me before, I'm asking you again. What have you done that makes people think you're a bad role model?" Ally asked immediately. Austin sighed, "Believe me, you don't want to know." She interjected, "But I do." He looked at the coffee cup in his hand and spoke, "I don't blame them for thinking that honestly, I've done some bad things." She needed to know his story from his side and not the internet's to know if she can get close to him, "Like?" He replied, "It started when I started drinking too much. I have no idea what made me do that. I thought that I was better than everyone else because I was so famous. I punched a reporter for taking a photo of me when I wasn't looking. I ignored my fans when all they wanted from me was to sign their album copies. I walked out of an interview because the water they had was too hot for me. I had a new girl at my house every night. I got into a bar fight. I got arrested twice. I took everything for granted." Ally couldn't believe he did all that. "But, Ally, you have to believe me when I tell you that I've changed. I'm not the same as before. I would never do these things again," he looked at her.

"I believe you," Ally smiled at him, "I'm not going to let your past define you." He smiled, "You're the first one to ever say that, thank you. I just hope my fans will feel the same." She asked, "You still haven't gone out in public after that?" He shook his head, "I stopped all interviews and shows 3 months ago. I'm supposed to release an album this summer. That's my comeback." Ally questioned, "What about our album? You're in it." He replied, "This album is a duet album. I'm not going to be alone in it. I told everyone that my comeback album will be me alone with no else, because that's how I had to make things right after that stage." Ally changed the subject after she sensed it was getting too depressing for him, "I've seen your movies by the way. You're an amazing actor." He looked at her with a small smile, "I am flattered that you took some time to watch my movies, especially when some of them contain ' _scenes'"_ Ally rolled her eyes at what he was implying, "Those were your weakest scenes." They bickered for a while until Austin decided to leave because it was late. They also had found the songs under the cushions when they started having a pillow fight that caused it to move. "Oh, and Ally?" he asked before getting into his car. "Yeah?" He smiled, "You have an amazing voice, don't let anyone tell otherwise."

* * *

 _The next morning…_

Ally drove to the studio as she thought about the feelings she had yesterday. Did she want to kiss him? Hell yes. Does she like him? Also, hell yes. Does she want to be with him? Maybe, she didn't know. A car honk disturbed her thoughts, so she looked at the car behind her in the rear view mirror and gasped, "Scott!" He is following her. Ally tried to drive faster than him to lose him but he always followed her. Ally made a plan in her mind to park the car and get into the studio as fast as possible so that he can't talk to her. She parked in the closest spot to the door she could find and took her laptop bag and stormed out of her car. She heard footsteps getting closer behind her as she quickened her pace. She yelled when she felt a hand stopping her by her elbow. "Let me go," she spat at him. He tightened his hold on her upper arm, "What the hell is this?" He held a magazine in the other hand with photos of her 'friendly' date with Austin on the cover. "It's none of your business." Her arm started to throb with pain as he sneered, "You went on a date with him? You've already moved on? What a slut. Moving from one man to another." Ally whimpered from pain, "At least he would never hurt me like you did." He tightened his grasp even more, "Hurt you? You're the girl that everyone takes advantage of and dumps the next day. Don't think you're anything special. I did you a favor by staying with you for 2 years, and this is how you repay me." Ally tried as hard as she could not to believe him, but his words sank in her brain anyways. She fought tears and tore her bruising arm from his hold, "I owe you nothing, you deserve nothing. For 2 years, I was the one doing you a favor by staying with you. Stay away from me." She ran towards the door as she heard him yell, "You'll end up alone! No one wants a whore like you! If I can't have you, no one will!" She ignored him and ran past the receptionist towards the studio room. She held her tears until she reached the room. She didn't expect anyone to be there. Austin was always late to their sessions. She slammed the door behind her and slid down it as she broke down. As she sobbed she heard a voice shout, "Are you okay?!" She looked up, "Austin…"

* * *

 **(1) Uptown Funk- Mark Ronson ft. Bruno Mars**

 **(2) I don't own Billboard**


	11. You Can Come To Me

**I'm guessing you guys really enjoy Auslly scenes;)**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or any characters I didn't make up.**

* * *

 _She slammed the door behind her and slid down it as she broke down. As she sobbed she heard a voice shout, "Are you okay?!" She looked up, "Austin…"_

"What are you doing here?" Ally stood up and wiped her tears away by her sleeve. "What happened?" Austin said sternly. "N-nothing, I just miss home, that's all," she smiled in an effort to hide her tears. His face softened and he opened his arms, "Come here." Ally couldn't resist and ran into his arms and wrapped her arms around his waist and started sobbing again. "It was him, wasn't it?" he murmured into her hair as he stroked her hair. Ally nodded in the middle of her break down. "What did he tell you?" he asked. "H-he said that I was nothing s-special and that no one wants me. He t-told me that if he c-can't have me, no o-one will. Austin, he will never leave me alone," she sobbed into his chest. "Don't care about what he says. Anyone would be lucky to have you. He's the one that's gonna end up alone. You're beautiful, smart, creative, modest, and so much more," Austin meant every word. He bit his tongue to prevent any unnecessary information from coming out. "But he won't leave me alone. I know what he's capable of, Austin. He's willing to hurt everyone around me!" Ally let go of him and started pacing.

Austin watched her and spoke, "But he won't." Ally stopped walking and turned to face him, her tears have stopped by now, "Huh?" Austin stood in front of her, "But he won't because you have me, Trish, Dez, and a lot of other people. He can't hurt you if you're always with one of us. And you're kinda with me every day, so I'd say you're safe." Ally gave him a small smile and nodded. "You ok now?" he asked with a smile. "Thanks, Austin," Ally said gratefully. "No problem. Now look what I have! I brought the songs with me today so we can rehearse!" he attempted to cheer her up. It worked when she laughed at his perky tone. "What do you say? Sing it off?" he smiled at her. Her mascara has smudged all of her face- and his shirt- while she was crying, but he still found her gorgeous somehow. She nodded and sat down on the couch while he took his laptop out to play the background music he recorded earlier. Ally looked at the lyrics on the papers and smiled at the words. Austin sat in a chair in front and gave her some notes about how to sing the song. "You ready?" he smiled. Ally nodded and he played the music.

 **Ally:**

 _When you're on your own_ **(1)** _  
Drowning alone  
And you need a rope that can pull you in  
Someone will throw it_ **Austin nodded with a smile at how perfectly she sang it from the first try**

 **Austin:**

 _And when you're afraid  
That you're gonna break_ _  
And you need a way to feel strong again  
Someone will know it _

**Both:**

 _And even when it hurts the most  
Try to have a little hope _**They both smiled at the harmony** _  
That someone's gonna be there when you don't  
When you don't_

If you wanna cry, I'll be your shoulder  
If you wanna laugh, I'll be your smile  
If you wanna fly, I will be your sky  
Anything you need that's what I'll be

 **They locked eyes** _  
You can come to me_

Austin stopped the music and looked at her, "What do you think?" Ally looked at the lyrics on her lap and smiled, "I love the lyrics, they're amazing, but can I suggest something?" Austin nodded. "Instead of this here, I would put it instead of this one to make it flow more easily," Ally showed him the change she made. "Yeah you're right, it does sound better. Wanna go through it again?" he smiled. They sang all day and rehearsed almost all of the songs. They felt accomplished because they finished the songs for the album. All they have to do now is submit them to Mark on Friday.

They walked through the long hallway on their way to exit the studio after they were done. "Shit," Austin muttered. "What?" Ally looked at where he was looking. There was a flock of reporters outside waiting for them to come out. "You go out first, I'll leave 10 minutes after you, okay?" Ally turned to him. Austin nodded at the small plan and hugged her goodbye. "See you on Friday!" he exclaimed before leaving. The reporters attacked Austin the minute he walked out. Austin bit his tongue to not say or do anything bad because this was the first time he gets surrounded by so many people in months. They were around him as he tried to walk to his car. "Are you and Ally Dawson an item?" one shouted among the others that were shouting his name to get his attention. "No," he muttered. "Are you going to hurt her like you hurt everyone else?" Austin clenched his hands at that question but ignored them. "Rumor has it that you blackmailed Ally Dawson to make this album with you to clear your image. Is that true?" _How do they make these things up?_ Austin wondered. He shook his head. "Are you going to cheat on her like you cheated on your ex-girlfriend?" Austin stuck with one word answers, "No." He reached his car and unlocked it. As he was climbing in he heard a question that caught his ears, "Do you have anything to say to your fans?" He stopped moving and spoke, "Tell them that I'm sorry for everything that I've done and that I'll be back soon better than before!" He got into his car and drove off leaving the reporters behind to spread his quote.

Ally counted 10 minutes before walking out. Reporters surrounded her immediately. She tried ignoring them but their questions stopped her. "Are you dating Austin Moon because he blackmailed you?" Ally looked at the reporter with a microphone extended toward her, "I am not dating Austin Moon and he never blackmailed me to do anything." Another asked, "How does America's angel like the bad boy?" Ally replied, "He's not a bad boy to me." She started walking again. "You know his history, right? How can you feel comfortable knowing he's done what he's done?"

Ally stopped once again and replied to all of them, "First, Austin and I are just friends, nothing more. Second, I willingly agreed to do this album, no one forced me. Third, he is the sweetest guy you'll ever meet and I feel lucky that I can work with him. Fourth, I don't care about his past because he's changed. He's a much better person now and recovering from that phase but all of you attacking him like this is only setting him back. I can see he's trying but your rude comments get into him and make him react in a way that he doesn't want to react. So let me make this clear, stay away from Austin with your negative comments or you will have to face charges for harassment. If you don't have anything good to say, stay away. Got that?" She resumed walking to her car as she heard them mutter incoherent words. She didn't care what they were saying. She only cared if they got the message or not. She won't let them break him again. She drove off satisfied with her comment. They didn't have to meet at the studio anymore this week. They were done and they each had plans. Ally didn't know what Austin's plans were but hers were Trish and Dez's wedding planning which starts tomorrow. Trish and Dez invited her and the best man to look at venues for the reception. Ally couldn't help but feel excited that she was going to help plan her best friend's wedding. And also that she wanted to meet the best man because they will have to do a lot of things together for this wedding. Like match outfits, slow dance together, take pictures as a couple, and take control of the entire wedding when the bride and groom are too busy. Ally felt a new friendship coming on.

* * *

 **(1) You Can Come To Me- Laura Marano ft. Ross Lynch**


	12. Lunch Planning

**Thank you so much for your reviews. They encourage me to write more;)**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or any characters I didn't make up.**

* * *

 _That night…_

Ally looked at her phone in her shaking hand and held the tears back. On her phone was the latest news on Austin Moon. ' _Austin Moon Seen With Mystery Girl On A Cozy Looking Coffee Date.'_ Pictures of him with his arm around a blonde with a big smile broke her heart. "I should've known better," Ally muttered angrily at herself. She looked at the pictures one more time before letting the tears slide down. She crawled into her bed and cried herself to sleep.

* * *

 _The next day (Wednesday)…_

Ally was ushered to a table for 4 on the dock that looked over the ocean. She was the first to arrive. It was a beautiful sunny day that matched their plans perfectly. They were going to have lunch together and discuss some details about the wedding. Later, the girls and the guys would split up and do whatever they wanted. She woke up with tear stains from Austin and still felt bad, but she was gonna hide that for her best friend. A mop of blonde hair she recognized caught her eyes from afar. She smiled knowingly at why he was here. He was the best man. She should've expected it. Ally's smile dropped when she remembered what he did. "Hey," he smiled. "Well, hello," she said angrily. Austin looked at her confused before she said, "You might be wondering why I'm so bitter on such a fine afternoon." He nodded, "Yeah, that was kind of on my mind." Ally stood up and crossed her arms, "You led me on and made me think that you didn't like anyone and then pictures of you on a date with a girl break the internet. She's quite beautiful, you know." Austin laughed as Ally fumed over the fact that he was taking this so lightly, "Glad you think so because that beautiful blonde is Cassidy, my sister, who was here for the day. I just dropped her off at the airport." Ally's face flushed while Austin doubled over with laughter. They were getting some weird stares from people. "Oh," she looked down. "You were so mad!" Austin exclaimed in the middle of his laughing fit. He stopped laughing and said, "This wasn't how I imagined the day would start, do you mind if we do this again?" Ally nodded relieved that he changed the subject before sitting back down and waited for Austin to re-arrive.

"Good afternoon, Ms. Dawson. Might I say you look lovely on this beautiful day," Austin charmingly said. Ally laughed and played along, "Good afternoon, Mr. Moon, I have to note that your flirting skills aren't as good as I expected them to be." Austin playfully glared at her and sat down across from her. Ally's hair and Austin's bangs danced with the wind as the sun glowed on their skin. "I can't believe our best friends are actually getting married," she stated. Austin nodded, "I know right. I thought I'd have a few more years before giving a speech at his wedding." Ally said, "What about you? Any future plans involving settling down?" He shrugged, "Not really. I mean I have thought about settling down one day, but I feel like that day is not anytime soon." Ally nodded as he spoke, "I'm not in any hurry though. Right now my focus is on releasing my album this summer and clearing my image."

"What about you?" he looked at her. She cleared her throat, "Um, settling down is a step I'm going to take in my life, but I'll do it only after I find the one and make sure he's the right one. And like you, my focus is on the album as well." Austin asked, "Did you actually think that he was the right one at one point of your relationship?" Ally nodded, "Yeah, but that was before he started being controlling and jealous. I'm glad I found out his truth before it's too late, though. I can't imagine spending the rest of my life with him." She put her elbows on the table and rested her chin on her entwined hands, "Have you started working on songs for your album?" He replied, "I have written a few songs that are gonna be recorded early April."

"Have you chosen a release date?" Ally asked.

"June 3rd," he said.

"Will I hear anything before that day?" she smiled cheekily.

Austin rolled his eyes with a smile, "Only with one condition."

Ally nodded, "Which is?"

He leaned on his elbows on the table and spoke, "You go out on a date with me this Friday after we submit the songs to Mark."

Ally blushed and looked down. "Look at me and answer yes or no. You do want to hear the songs after all."

She looked at him and smiled, "Well, since you apparently didn't go on a date with someone else, my answer is yes."

He smiled triumphantly leaned back on his chair, "By the way, why were you so upset that I went on a date with another girl? It isn't because you like me, do you?" Ally wanted to wipe that smirk off his face. "If I didn't like, I wouldn't have cried myself to sleep because of that or agreed to go on a date with you." Austin's smile dropped, "You cried because of me?" Ally shook her head, "I cried at the thought of you being with another girl, don't worry about it." He took her hand, "I'm sorry. The last thing I want to do is hurt you. And I like you too by the way." Ally smiled at him before noticing the last pair on this lunch finally arrived. They pulled their hands away from each other. "Nice of you to finally show up to your wedding planning," Ally said sarcastically. "Yeah, I can't imagine how long you'll keep the guests waiting on that day," Austin chimed in. Trish and Dez rolled their eyes at the two and sat down. "It's not like you were alone. You had each other," Dez said. "Yeah, we had each other," Austin looked at Ally with a soft smile. Ally gave him a sweet smile as well. "So, have you picked out any venues?" Ally asked. Trish replied, "About that, there's something we need to tell you." Austin mirrored Ally's concerned expression, "What's wrong?" Dez answered, "Nothing is wrong, but we actually discussed this with our families and decided that we want to have our wedding in Miami, where we were both born and raised." Ally smiled, "That's a great idea. I'd love to visit home. But we should go there soon to do everything." Trish nodded, "I know, that's why this summer, we're spending it all there." Everyone smiled at that. "Count me in," Austin declared. "Me too," Ally agreed. Neither of them could contain the excitement inside them. They had a date this Friday and were gonna see their families this summer. And who knows, if things actually worked out between them, maybe they'd introduce each other to their families.


	13. Incredible

**2 new chapters in 2 days;) that's just because I have finals coming up and won't be able to write as much.**

 **And thank you so much for your reviews; they're awesome. I'm glad you like the story and hopefully will continue to until the story ends.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or any characters I didn't make up.**

* * *

 _Friday…_

Ally was stressed. So stressed that she contemplated not leaving the house at all. Reason of her stress? She had nothing to wear for her date with Austin. She wanted to look beautiful, but not so beautiful that it showed she was trying too hard. _'But he thinks I'm beautiful in anything I wear,'_ she thought, ' _but this is our first date; I can't show up wearing just anything.'_ She groaned and resorted to her last hope: Texting Trish about her dilemma and telling her to come over for help. 15 minutes later, Trish was there. "I heard a call for help," she teased. Ally rolled her eyes before exclaiming, "I'm supposed to be at the studio in 20 minutes and I'm not even dressed yet! You've gotta help me!" Trish smirked and went into Ally's closet to look for an outfit. "Do you know where he's taking you?" Trish yelled from the closet. "No! He just told me to dress casual. But how casual can I be for a date?" Ally replied as she sat on her bed. A moment later, Trish emerged from the closet with pieces of clothes in her hand. "I suggest you start changing," she said handing Ally the outfit she chose. Ally went into her bathroom and put the clothes on. _'Woah, Trish,'_ Ally thought as she looked over herself in the mirror. Her outfit consisted of black jeans, minty green top, and black flats. Ally's hair was already done with soft curls. Trish did her makeup naturally. "Thanks, Trish. I would've never picked such an outfit, but I have to say I look good," Ally said. Trish laughed, "You're welcome. Now you better get going, you're already late." They quickly left the house and parted ways.

Ally drove towards the studio to give Mark their songs when her phone received a text. Knowing better than to text and drive, Ally chose to look at it later. She saw Austin's car parked as she stopped the car. Saying hi to the receptionist and security, she rushed to Mark's office. "Ms. Dawson, Mr. Reynolds is waiting inside with Mr. Moon for you," his secretary said as Ally walked towards her. Ally quickly thanked her and went inside the office where she saw Mark sitting behind his desk and Austin sitting on a single couch in front of it. They were both smirking at her. "Nice of you to finally show up," Austin teased quoting her from their first writing session **(1)**. Ally glared at him as she took a seat in a similar couch across his. "I was wondering if you'd ever come," Mark chimed. "Overslept," Ally lied with a shrug. "Or you just didn't find anything to wear and had to call Trish for help," Austin laughed. She turned towards him quickly, "How did you know?" He shrugged and said, "Remember that our friends are engaged and living together. Dez told me." Ally turned to Mark, "Isn't there something we should be showing you?" Austin replied, "I already showed him the songs. You snooze you lose." Ally glared at him, "I wasn't asking you. Anyway, what did you think of them?" Austin straightened up and got serious to hear Mark's response for the first time.

"I have to say, I didn't expect you two to write such deep love songs together, but I'm glad you did. I'm also glad that you are now getting along because guess what? Your album is going to be recorded!" Mark exclaimed. Ally stood up with happiness and said, "Thank you so much! This is gonna be amazing!" Austin laughed with happiness as well as he shook Mark's hand furiously, "Thank you so much, Mark! We promise we won't late you down." Mark laughed, "You better not. I'll see you in the studio on Monday." Austin asked, "Who's gonna be our sound engineer?" Mark replied, "Do you want him to be Dez?" Austin nodded immediately. Ally was surprised that Dez was Austin's sound engineer. _'Maybe that's how they met,'_ Ally thought. Austin and Ally exited the office and stopped outside the door. Ally hugged him tightly and whispered, "I can't believe this is actually happening." Austin hugged her back and buried his face in her neck, "I know right? Although I think if we still hated each other, we'd be shooting each other by now." Ally laughed as they broke the hug and resumed their walk to Austin's car. Ally checked her phone for the text she got earlier and her blood ran cold.

 _Check your mailbox. -Scott_

"Are you okay?" Austin asked noticing her fright. "Y-yeah, it's just someone telling me to check my mailbox," Ally said. "So, where are you taking me?" she said changing the subject. "That is a surprise," he smirked. They left the studio and went into his car, Austin opened the door for Ally of course. "Dez is a sound engineer?" Ally asked as he drove. "Yeah, he can sing too. I sometimes record my songs with him and our other friend, Elliot, in it," he replied. "So you're in a band with him and Elliot?" Ally asked. "I guess you could call us that. I do sing solo in most of my songs, but some of them, we sing them as a band," he informed.

"Are you only 3 in the band?" she inquired. "We're actually four. Me, Dez, Elliot, and the other best friend, Ryder," he said. "How come I've never seen them?" Ally said. "We're actually on a break. Dez and Elliot wanted to study, Ryder needed a break, and I'm here, still singing outside the band. We're supposed to reform our band next January," Austin replied. Ally nodded, "Sounds exciting. I guess I'll meet them at the wedding." Austin smiled, "You'll meet them a lot sooner. They'll be in Miami as well this summer for the wedding planning. You'll meet them there, as well as Cassidy and Kira." Ally turned to him, "Who's Kira?" Austin said, "Ryder's girlfriend and Cassidy's best friend." Ally smiled to herself, "This summer is gonna be awesome. My parents are actually planning an entire month where we'll stay at the farm. They told me to invite my friends and yours." He replied, "Really? Do they know that we're going on a date?" Ally blushed, "I might have told them that we're dating because they were bugging me about my love life." Austin smirked, "You are flying into this relationship." She laughed and shook her head.

"Where are we going?" she asked again. "We're going to- damn, you almost got me," he said. Ally laughed, "It was worth a shot." Austin suddenly parked the car in the middle of nowhere. "Austin…" Ally trailed off in fear, "where are we?" Austin unbuckled his seatbelt and turned to her, "Relax, don't be scared. I'm not kidnapping you. This is our date." Ally looked around her at the trees, "Seriously?" He chuckled and got out of the car. He opened her door for her and Ally got out. She noticed that he was holding a picnic basket and blanket in his hand. She could hear waves crashing so she knew they were close to the beach. "Come on, we have a walk ahead of us," Austin took her hand and let her to their destination. Ally held on to his hand fearfully as they walked between the trees. "So I learned something new about you today. You are easily scared," he said. "I'm not usually scared easily, but when you put me in the middle of nowhere with no cell service or civilization, I'm freaked out," she responded.

"But I also learned something new about you today. You're good at keeping secrets," Ally continued. Austin chuckled as he led her into a wide opening. They were at a very secluded part of a beach where there was an abandoned light house. Trees completely surrounded the place for more privacy. "Woah," Ally said as she admired the area. "Is this okay?" she heard him ask. She turned towards him and nodded furiously. "You should've trusted me," he teased. He walked ahead of her and set the blanket and basket down. He set the place up and then came to stand in front of her, "Ms. Dawson, your table, or blanket, is set. Would you like me to usher you?" Ally linked her arm with his and smiled as he led her to sit on the blanket. He sat down in front of her and propped his knee up and rest his arm on it while leaning on the other one. He started taking food out of the basket. Ally smiled at his choice of food; it was simple but perfect. "I hope you like it. I chose this place for privacy, no paparazzi," he said. She smiled and said, "This is perfect. Thank you, Austin." They smiled at each other as they started eating and talking.

Several hours later, they were sitting on the top of the lighthouse staring at the sunset. Austin was leaning against the wall with his knees propped up. Ally sat between his legs as he wrapped his arms around her shoulders from behind. Ally leaned into his chest while they looked at the beautiful sun sinking into the sparkling ocean. "It's so beautiful," she muttered. But Austin wasn't looking at the sunset but at her as he mumbled, "Yeah, very beautiful." They sat in comfortable silence. A while later, Ally changed their position so that she was sitting in front of him. The sun was gone and only the moon illuminated their features.

"Ally?" he asked. "Yeah?" she smiled. "That was Scott who texted you earlier, right?" he said. Her smile dropped as she looked down, "Uh, y-yeah." He put his hand under her chin and forced to look into his eyes, "What did he tell you?" She replied, "He told me to check my mailbox. I don't why he would want me to check it." His features turned stern as he spoke, "I'll drop you off at your house tonight and we'll check your entire house, including the mailbox." Ally asked, "What about my car? It's at the studio." He nodded, "I'll pick you up on Monday and go there. You can get it then." Ally wrapped him in a tight hug.

 _Later that night…_

Austin parked in front of her house and turned to face her, "Today was amazing." Ally nodded with a smile, "I agree. We had so much fun. Thank you for this date." He smiled before speaking a bit nervously, "S-so, I've been wanting to ask you this all night, and I think now's the time." Ally nodded for him to continue. "Will you be my girlfriend, Princess?" he asked. Ally laughed at the old nickname, "I would love to, but just one thing." He looked at her with a concerned expression. "I just got out of a bad 2 year relationship, and I'm not ready to jump right into one. We need to take this slow, okay?" she said. He smiled, "We'll take this at whatever pace you're comfortable with." He ended the moment when he got out of the car and opened the door for her to get out. They checked her mailbox and found a letter in it… from him.

Ally welcomed into her house to inspect the letter even more. Austin tore the letter and poured its contents on the coffee table. Ally gasped at what she saw. Pictures of her and Austin during their writing sessions scattered across the coffee table. "H-how did he get into the studio?" she stuttered in shock. Austin looked mad, "We're not recording in the same room. And we're ensuring more security on who gets in and out." Ally nodded before muttering angrily, "That son of a bitch just won't leave me." He looked at her and took her hands in his, "You'll be okay. Everything's gonna be okay." Ally smiled at his effort to make her feel better. After inspecting the whole house so that they were sure it was safe, they were finally separating for the night.

"I'll see you on Monday, I guess," he said. "I'm spending tomorrow with Trish, we haven't hung out in a long time. And I have a photo shoot on Saturday," Ally informed, "so we can't really meet up this weekend." He nodded, "It's okay." They hugged each other tightly. They broke the hug but kept their arms around each other. "Ally," he whispered. Ally nodded at him to continue as they leaned in. _'We're not stopping this time,'_ he thought as he crashed his lips with hers in a deep, passionate kiss. They both saw fireworks and felt the sparks. "Woah," she said as they separated. "Slow enough?" he asked. "Perfect," she smiled. A while later, he left. _'This is going to be amazing,'_ Ally thought. They were both sure that it was going to be incredible. Extremely incredible.

* * *

 **(1) Quote from Chapter 4, 'First Writing Session.'**


	14. Wait It Out

**I have to admit, the previous chapter wasn't as strong as I intended it to be, but in my defense, I had a busy day and it was taking too long. Let's just pretend that it's adorable. I'll try to step up my game. Any constructive criticism is welcomed for that reason.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or any characters I didn't make up.**

* * *

 _Last time…_

 _'This is going to be amazing,' Ally thought. They were both sure that it was going to be incredible. Extremely incredible._

 _2 weeks later…_

It was not incredible. It was not what they expected. Sure, during the first week they had a blast. But soon, they weren't hanging out enough outside of work and if they did get to hang out for a bit, they'd argue over things they both thought were stupid. Neither of them liked it, but they both liked being with each other.

Mark and Dez threw their heads back in frustration after the couple messed the song up… again. "Guys, what's the problem? You were doing great at the beginning," Mark complained. Austin rubbed the back of his neck while looking down at his shoes as Ally asked, "Can we take 10?" Mark sighed and nodded, "Go freshen up and come back as good as before." They both thanked him and left the studio room. They were using a different room now after what happened with Scott.

They each went their separate ways. Ally went further into the hallway to the vending machine to get some water; Austin went into the empty snack room for some peace and quiet. He took a seat on the couch, leaned his head back, and closed his eyes in an effort to minimize the pounding headache he had. He covered his face with his hands to prevent the bright light from seeping into his eyes. Ally walked into the room to take advantage of the few minutes they had to talk to him, "Austin, what's wrong? You seem stressed." He replied from under his hands, "Nothing, I'm fine. Just tired."

Ally crossed her arms and stared angrily at him, "You've been tired this entire week? We have a deadline to finish recording, and so far, we only finished half the songs. You need to throw whatever's on your mind aside and focus on this album!" Austin dropped his hands and glared at her, "You don't know what's happening right now, so don't just barge in and accuse me of being neglectful." She narrowed her eyes at him, "Nothing is important enough to start neglecting your job. I'm sick of having to sing the same song over and over just because your mind is somewhere else and-" Austin interrupted, "How about you just fuck off?!" He winced immediately after saying that. "I didn't mean that," he spoke in a quiet tone looking at his shoes. Ally hid the hurt tone in her voice by snapping, "Of course you didn't." She turned on her heels and stormed out of the room trying to keep her tears from falling.

' _He changed,'_ she thought as she went into their old studio room, ' _he's turning out to be just like Scott.'_ Ally bit her lip as a tear crawled down at that thought. She didn't want another Scott. She didn't need another Scott. She wanted an Austin. But not this Austin. She wanted the Austin she saw during their date. This Austin was careless and rude. Nothing she could think of justified his actions. Was he going back to the things he's done before meeting her?

The door opened slowly and an upset Austin entered the room. Ally wiped her tears away and turned to face him, "What happened to you?" He sighed, "A lot of things are going on right now. I'm busy and stressed. Please don't take any negative thing I say personally." She said, "I'm your girlfriend. We're supposed to hang out and go on dates and have fun not tell each other to fuck off. I haven't seen you outside of work for a week." Austin was about to say something, but Ally beat him to it, she needed to vent, "I feel like there's something you're not telling me, and I can't trust you knowing that."

He looked at her sadly, "Please, just wait it out. I'm not ready to tell anyone. I promise I'll tell you soon, but for now, just wait." She looked down and crossed her arms, "So this is it." He looked at her confusedly, "What?" She looked at him with tears in her eyes and spoke in a cracking voice, "I can't do this right now, and neither can you. We're both under a lot of stress and it's obvious that we shouldn't be together right now. We were just influenced by all the dating rumors and love songs. We never had feeling for each other. Maybe we should just be friends. For the sake if this album and the wedding."

Austin couldn't believe that she thought they didn't like each other. If anything, they should be together for the sake of the album and wedding. "A-ally-" he went to say but Ally interrupted, "Please? You're asking me to wait it out, and I'm asking you to just give me space. Can you do that?" He sighed and nodded, "If it makes you happy, then I'll do anything. The last thing I want to do is hurt you." Ally attempted to smile at him, but all she could do was run to him and wrap her arms around his neck in a tight hug. "Thank you," she whispered into his neck and he hugged her back. "Thank you too," he mumbled before kissing her cheek.

"Are we good now?" Dez asked as soon as they walked in. They nodded and took their places in preparation to sing. They stood in the recording booth with a recording microphone in-between them. They put their headphones on and nodded at each other to comfort each other. "Ready? 1,2,3," Mark counted as the music started playing through the headphones.

 **Ally:**  
 _When you hold me in the street_ **(1)**  
And _you kiss me on the dance floor  
I wish that it could be like that  
Why can't it be like that? 'Cause I'm yours _**Ally closed her eyes to not show too much emotion to him**

 _We keep behind closed doors  
Every time I see you, I die a little more _**She opened her eyes but refused to look at him as she sang** _  
Stolen moments that we steal as the curtain falls  
It'll never be enough _**He kept his eyes on her** _  
It's obvious you're meant for me  
Every piece of you, it just fits perfectly  
Every second, every thought, I'm in so deep  
But I'll never show it on my face _

_But we know this, we got a love that is homeless_

 _Why can't you hold me in the street?  
Why can't I kiss you on the dance floor? _**She stared deeply into his eyes** _  
I wish that it could be like that  
Why can't we be like that? 'Cause I'm yours_ **She shut her eyes tightly**

 **Austin:**

 _When you're with him, do you call his name  
Like you do when you're with me? Does it feel the same?  
Would you leave if I was ready to settle down?  
Or would you play it safe and stay? _**He looked into her eyes to let her know that he meant every word** _  
Girl you know this, we got a love that is hopeless_

 **Both:**

 _Why can't you hold me in the street?  
Why can't I kiss you on the dance floor?  
I wish that it could be like that  
Why can't we be like that? 'Cause I'm yours_

 **Austin:**

 _And nobody knows I'm in love with someone's baby  
_ **Ally:**

 _I don't wanna hide us away_

 **Austin:** _  
Tell the world about the love we're making_

 **Ally:**

 _I'm living for that day_

 **Both:  
** _Someday_ **They sang softly**

 **Austin:**

 _Why can't I hold you in the street?  
Why can't I kiss you on the dance floor?_

 **Ally:**

 _I wish that we could be like that  
Why can't we be like that? 'Cause I'm yours, I'm yours _

**Both:**

 _Oh, why can't you hold me in the street?  
Why can't I kiss you on the dance floor?  
I wish that it could be like that  
Why can't it be like that? 'Cause I'm yours  
Why can't I say that I'm in love?  
I wanna shout it from the rooftops  
I wish that it could be like that  
Why can't we be like that? 'Cause I'm yours _**They shut their eyes tightly singing through the note** _  
_ **Ally:** _  
Why can't we be like that?  
Wish we could be like that _**She sang softly while looking into his eyes**

The moment was interrupted when they heard Mark and Dez clapping and cheering. "And that's a wrap on this song, finally! You two got your groove back!" Mark exclaimed happily. They smiled at the two and thanked them before exiting the booth and listen to the song. "Wow. It turned out even better than I thought," Austin said. "At least now we can move on to other songs," Ally said. She turned to face Austin with a soft smile, "Right?" He gave her a fake smile, "Right."

* * *

 _That night…_

Ally flipped through the channels lazily trying to find something that interested her before a particular headline caught her eyes. 'Austin Moon Caught In Bar Fight Once Again.' Her eyes widened. He told her he wasn't going to do that anymore. She cringed as she watched the small clip of the video of the fight. It showed Austin drunk out of his mind repeatedly punching another drunk guy on the floor while screaming cuss words. The guy was covered in blood and was slipping in and out of consciousness. Ally felt scared knowing that he was capable of physically hurting someone to this degree. What if he did that to her? She hugged her knees to her chest and let the tears roll down. She just didn't know who she was getting involved with anymore.

 _3am…_

Ally jolted from her sleep when she heard a crash downstairs. She scrambled from her bed and picked a chair up and opened her door slightly to hear better. She heard footsteps. And they were walking all over downstairs but never coming up. She swiftly shut her door and locked it and picked up her phone. She called the first person that popped into her mind. She spoke into her phone in a hushed voice trying not to panic.

"I'm so sorry for waking you up, b-but someone broke into my house, a-and they're downstairs and walking everywhere and breaking stuff ,and I'm scared, and I didn't know who else to call."

* * *

 **(1) Secret Love Song- Little Mix ft. Jason Derulo**


	15. Better?

**This story has me going crazy with all the things that are going to happen in it. Trying to fit 4 years' worth of ideas into one story is not easy. But hopefully it'll turn out good. Do you like it so far?  
Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or any characters I didn't make up.**

* * *

 _"I'm so sorry for waking you up, b-but someone broke into my house, a-and they're downstairs and walking everywhere and breaking stuff, and I'm scared, and I didn't know who else to call."_

Ally locked herself in her bedroom and called 911. She stayed there until she heard sirens approaching. She didn't know if that person was still in her house, but she wasn't taking any chances. She carefully tiptoed out of her bedroom with a hardcover book as shield to go downstairs. She stayed within the shadows and walked down the stairs quietly until she heard something fall behind her. She covered her mouth with her hand to hold her yell in. Ally slowly turned around to see the source of that noise and relaxed. A photo frame fell from its spot on the wall.

The doorbell rang and she knew who it was. She ran as fast as she could and opened the door. "Good morning, miss. We received a call about a break in. Is this the right house?" one of the two officers said. Ally let out the breath she was holding and nodded, "Thank God you're here. Please come in." They entered and looked around with their guns held on point in case the intruder is still here.

Ally looked at her home and gasped. This is the first time she sees it. Broken lamps, slashed pillows, cracked TV, and more damage was everywhere. _'How did I never hear this?'_ she thought. She held her tears in as the police checked her entire house to make sure the intruder was gone. "Hello? Ally?" she heard from the open front door. Ally ran to the door and hugged her tightly. "Trish," she let a few tears slide. "Ally, are you okay? Do you know who it is? Did they hurt you? Did you call the police?" Trish exclaimed after pulling away. Ally noticed Dez searching through the house for evidence of who it is. "I'm so sorry for waking you up, but I didn't know what to do," Ally said before telling the entire story. The officers came and interrogated the 3 about the incident.

"Ally! Are you okay?!" someone exclaimed from the still open front door. Her eyes widened. _Austin._ How did he know what happened? Ally didn't call him. She was going to but immediately changed her mind. He rushed into the living room where they all stood. "What are you doing here?" was the first thing she said to him. "Dez called me and said someone broke into your house. I immediately came here. Are you hurt?" he stood in front of her.

Ally tried to not show any emotion in front of him, but then wrapped her arm around him in a tight hug. She needed to feel safe again. That was the only place she did. "Excuse me. Who might you be?" one of the officers asked him. "I'm Austin Moon, her friend," he replied. "Can we ask you all some questions?" They nodded. "Do you have any idea about who might break into your house? A high school enemy, an angry relative, a mad ex-boyfriend?" they asked.

They all looked at each other as realization dawned them. "My ex-boyfriend," Ally muttered. Sensing her fear and anger, Austin took a hold of her hand to comfort her. She looked at him with so much fear it broke his heart. Several questions later, Austin asked, "What's gonna happen now?" The officers looked at each other before replying, "We're going to assign an undercover cop to watch this area in case the intruder does return. We also need some information about your ex boyfriend to look over his history and track his last actions."

"Did you check the perimeter?" Austin asked sternly. "Yes, sir, and the property is clear." Austin nodded, "Is she safe enough to stay here tonight?" One officer answered, "We cannot enter the mind of the intruder, so we don't know if he decides to come back later. It's up to her to decide if she wants to stay here. Are there any more things you would like us to help you with?" The 4 thanked the officers and talked about the next steps they were taking before the officers left.

Ally immediately turned to Trish, "I can't stay here. I don't feel safe, Trish. Where am I staying?" Trish looked at her best friend with kind eyes, "Ally, I wasn't going to let you stay here. You can come with us, but Dez's parents are visiting." Ally shook her head, "No, no. I'm not gonna come between you guys. I'll just book a hotel room for the night." The guys, who were talking and searching through the house, came into the room.

"Nonsense. You can stay at my house, Ally," Austin said, "and by the way, the house is clear of evidence. I don't how we're gonna find that asshole." Ally looked at him, "Are you sure you want me to stay with you? I can just go to a hotel." He shook his head, "No. I won't feel good when you're in a hotel. He might be there. My house has a lot of security." Austin momentarily forgot that they broke up. He still wanted to be with her, but a lot has been going on in his life that she couldn't take it. Ally mentally cheered because she was going to stay at his house, with him, in his natural environment. Maybe she could learn the truth behind a few of the mysteries he had.

 _The next morning…_

Ally flipped the pancakes in the pan as she prepared breakfast for two. She spent the rest of the night at Austin's house -mansion- sleeping in one of his guest bedrooms. He did give her a tour of the house before they retired to bed. The front door opens to a huge room that was divided into a dining room, living room, and kitchen with modern looking stairs on the far wall. His home was roomy but cozy, each space was as big as her living room and kitchen combined. So it was huge. The second floor consisted of a master (Austin's) bedroom, guest bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, and a movie/video game room. He told her to pick whatever room she wanted, so she chose the one closest to his. She found out that he listens to music when he can't sleep.

She woke up before him, so she decided to thank him for letting her stay here by making him breakfast in his spacious kitchen. She was a little shaken up from last night, but she pushed it to the back of her mind to not think about it too much. Was she scared to go back home? Extremely. Was she gonna suck it up and be brave because she can't stay at his house for too long? Unfortunately, yes.

Ally heard him talking over the phone in the living room. He couldn't hear or see her because he was too into the call to notice. She strained her ears to hear the conversation because it seemed like he was having an argument. "For the millionth time, Mom, no… I don't care if he's my father, he left us… Cass can do whatever she wants, but I'm not doing it… if he wants to talk to me, maybe he should've been a better dad," she heard. His argument with his mom continued for several minutes before he hung up angrily. He sat on the couch and leaned his elbows on his knees and rested his face in his hands.

Deciding to make him feel better, Ally took the tray of pancakes, eggs, and waffles to him. "Good morning, grumpy," she cheered. He looked up at her and smiled at her peppiness, "I didn't know you were up." She set the tray on the coffee table and sat on the single couch next to him, "Well, I am, and I made breakfast!" He looked at the food then at her with a soft smile. "What?" she asked. "I haven't had someone make me breakfast since I moved here. It looks just like my mom's," he said. "I used my own way to make these, so I hope you like them," she said as she served him his plate and took hers. Austin closed his eyes to savor the taste of the food, "Hmmm, tastes just like my mom's cooking."

"Who were you talking to on the phone? You seemed frustrated," she asked. He sighed, "My mom. She trying to convince me to meet up with my father. 10 years later and he suddenly wants his family back. Well, guess what? I'm not going anywhere close to that man." Ally set her empty plate on the coffee table and asked, "Why not?" He spoke with anger in his voice, but she knew it wasn't towards her, "He left his son when he needed him most. Because of him, his son had to give up whatever teenagers do to work to help his mom feed him and his sister. He wanted nothing to do with his son, and now he wants him because he's 'grown into a successful young man.' He didn't watch me grow into this success, he's not gonna watch me live through it."

"But if your sister and mom forgave him, why can't you?" she asked. "My mom loved him and still does because he helped her through a couple rough years before they got married. Cass just wants to know what it's like to have a dad. I won't forget everything he didn't do because he 'needed to feel free,'" he spat. "Is this why you come late and upset sometimes in the morning?" she said.

"Yeah. She calls me every week in the morning and ends up pushing me to talk to him, it's been happening since last year, kinda the reason why I go involved with drinking too much," he said. Ally sat exactly next to him and took his hand, "You don't have to do anything you don't want to do. Take your time and think about it. It's not worth arguing with your mom and sister about it." She stared deeply into his eyes as he started leaning in. He abruptly stopped and leaned back, "Sorry about that, just got caught up in the moment." Ally nodded and cleared her throat.

"Do you feel any better?" she smiled at him. He nodded and smiled back at her, "Thank, Alls." She blushed at this nickname. "What about you? Do you feel better from yesterday? And why didn't you call me?" he asked. "You have so much going on in your life and I didn't want to bother you. And I'm trying not to think about it because there's nothing I can do. The police has all his information and the pictures he mailed me, so it's in their hands. I want to move on and not think about it," she replied. "Ally, you can always call me, even if I'm on my deathbed. It's okay to show your pain and fear every once in a while, you know," he nudged her. She gave him a small smile and looked down, "That's kinda hard for me. I got used to hiding my fear because of him. If I show him that I'm scared, he'd do something to me."

He looked at her confusedly, "Like what?" She looked down and didn't reply until he got the idea. His eyes widened as he stammered, "He'd r-rape you for being scared?" Ally held in tears as memories came back flashing at her, "He thought I was being a coward and punished me for it." Austin was shocked, "How many times?" She let the tears out as she replied, "The last 6 months were full of it. I tried to hang on because I thought maybe he's right. I was his punching bag when he was angry. He said that he does it for my own sake. So that I learn to respect my boyfriend and please him. I-I believed him." Austin wrapped his arm around her shoulder as she broke down into his chest. He kissed her head and held her as she let the feelings she never let out escape her.

A while later she calmed down, "Don't we have recording today?" He wiped her tears away, "I called Mark and told him we're recording at my house. I have a small recording studio." She nodded and scooted away from him, "We're both pretty messed up, huh?" He smiled softly, "Yeah, but we're still okay." He stood up and pulled her up with him. "So what do you say?" he grinned, "Sing it out?" She laughed at the old phrase he used to comfort her and nodded as he led her to his studio.

* * *

 **Definitely NOT proud of this one, but I couldn't leave you hanging. But here's a small spoiler for the next chapter: They get back together;)**


	16. Photoshoot

**Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or any characters I didn't make up.**

* * *

Austin stepped onto the set of the photoshoot for his solo shoot dressed in white jeans, gray shirt, and black leather jacket. He gave the camera the most serious look he had while posing. Ally had already finished her solo part and was waiting for their couple photos after Austin finishes.

"And we're done!" the cameraman, James, exclaimed with a smile, "Austin, you did great. The images look awesome." Austin smiled and thank him as Ally walked over to him. "You are going to make me seem like a mouse in the couple shoot," she stated as she reached him. "Is that so?" he smirked at her. "You're too tall!" she jokingly complained. "You're short, princess, face it," he said. She glared at him until the hair and makeup artist walks over to fix his hair.

"Okay, guys, I want the sexiest looks you can manage and make me feel like you are the 'it' couple everyone wants to be," James said from his position behind the camera. And they began posing as a couple.

* * *

"You wanna go out for lunch?" Austin asked her as they finished the shoot. "As long as you're paying," she smiled. They walked to his car not caring about the paparazzi surrounding them. Austin opened the door for Ally before going to his side. "Prepare for the news these paparazzi are gonna spread," he joked as he drove out of the parking lot. "They can't make up anything. Just two friends going out for lunch after work," she stated.

They both hated the fact that they were just friends, but they had to accept it. They never really talked about it anymore. It could be because they only met at work. This was the first time they had time to actually hang out. "Yeah, friends…" he trailed off. Suddenly, Ally remembered something, "Hey, can I ask you something?" Austin glanced at her before nodding. "A few weeks ago, you were all over the news for getting into a bar fight, may I ask why? Didn't you say you were gonna stop these stuff?"

He winced before replying, "I know, I messed up again. My manager gave me one more chance, I get into trouble again, I get help." Ally watched him with sharp eyes, "But why did you fight with him? The poor guy was bloody and almost unconscious!" He sighed, "We were both drunk, I said some things he didn't like, he said some things I didn't like, and things just happened. Luckily I was stronger." Ally's jaw dropped at his arrogant smirk, "And you're smirking! How the hell is that supposed to make this better?" He parked the car in front of the restaurant and turned to her, "It happened, it's over, move on. You have no idea how terrible the things he was saying were. I'm gonna control myself and limit the damage I can cause to others' lives. Happy?" Ally crossed her arms, "How do I know that you're not gonna hurt your surroundings when you're mad now?" His expression turned hurt as he asked, "You think I'm gonna hurt my friends? Is that how you trust me?" Ally sighed and shook her head, "N-no, I'm just used to guys turning violent when they're angry. It's not your fault." He put a hand over hers and gave her a soft smile, "I understand, but that doesn't mean I will hurt you. I would never even lay a harmful hand on you. You're safe with me." Ally leaned over the console and hugged him tightly. "I trust you, and I know that you will get better and get back to your fans better than before," she mumbled into his neck. He chuckled and replied, "I hope so."

* * *

"Can you believe the album drops tomorrow?" Ally asked as they finished their meal. "I know right. I know it's gonna be a huge hit. I can't wait to see everybody's reactions," he smiled. "We didn't really post anything about it on social media, didn't we?" she asked, "We need to announce it on our accounts as well to let the fans know we're both happy about it." Austin nodded as Ally prepared to take a selfie together. "Nah, that's too boring," Austin said as he looked at the photos, "what about this?" He took the menu and covered half his face with it so only his eyes showed with a surprised expression. Ally looked at him from the corners of her eyes and furrowed her brows to form a weirded out look and took the picture. Ally captioned it with ' _#ToTheMoonAndBack out tomorrow.'_ She

Her phone almost immediately blew up so she turned it off. Austin screenshotted the post with the caption and posted it on his account ' _What she said… #ToTheMoonAndBack'_ and tagged her. "Did Scott try to contact you after that incident?" Austin asked as they walked to his car. "Uh, yeah, so I changed my number," she replied. The police contacted her a few days after the break in to tell her that there was no evidence that it was Scott, so they couldn't arrest him, but they advised her to get a restraining order against him for her safety, which she did. Scott wasn't exactly pleased with that and threatened her through voicemails and texts. Austin drove them back to the set to get Ally's car.

"Man, I can't wait to go back home this summer," Austin breathed out as he drove. "Didn't Dez tell you?" Ally asked. "Tell me what?" he glanced at her. "Trish told me that they're planning on moving back to Miami this summer. She asked me if I wanted to move back as well," Ally informed. "Do you?" Austin questioned as he parked the car. "I'm thinking about it. I mean, I'll be closer to my family, far away from Scott, with my best friend. But one thing is holding me back," she stated. "I think you should go. You'd be safer there. Nothing is worth holding you back," Austin said. "I know this may sound silly, but I don't want to move because we'll be miles apart. We may be just friends, but I just don't feel good leaving you," Ally fiddled with her fingers in her lap.

"Honestly, I kinda wanna move back home too," Austin said after a long pause. She looked at him and spoke, "Really?" He nodded, "Yeah, LA has gotten me in nothing but trouble, and I think a fresh start is what I need. We can still work from there too." Ally smiled, "So we're going home?" Austin nodded with a big smile, "It's about time." They hugged each other tightly. Ally turned her head and kissed his cheek before pulling away and getting out of the car. "I'll see you at the album release party tomorrow," she said. "See you there," Austin saluted her.

* * *

 **Woohoo! They're going home. Now you know the name of the album! I hope you like it.**

 **This chapter is just a filler, but I had to update because it's been a long time. I'm going through finals and don't have enough time to write. This chapter has been waiting to be finished for two weeks. On the bright side, I finish school in a week, so I'll have plenty of time to update.**

Instagram: _austin .and .ally


	17. The Interview

**Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or any characters I didn't make up.**

* * *

"Hello! And welcome to The Hellen Show where we have 2 very special guests coming out!" the interviewer, Hellen, exclaimed, "Help me welcome Ally Dawson and Austin Moon for his first interview in a year, everybody!" The audience cheered as Austin and Ally walked in on stage waving at the crowd. They took their places next to each other on the couch after hugging their interviewer. "So, Austin, Ally, I hear you two just released a duet album last month! Tell me about that," Hellen asked.

"Well, it's something that we worked really hard on and really tried to express our feelings in it, and we're proud at how it turned out," Ally smiled. "How was the first day of working together? Was it awkward?" Hellen inquired. Austin shrugged, "Um, it was definitely uncomfortable and weird- I mean come on we've just met and already working on love songs together, but also because we weren't very fond of each other at first."

Hellen gasped, "Really?! How are you now?" Ally laughed and replied, "We're okay now, he turned out to be a bit bearable." Austin nudged her and teased her, "At least I wasn't an annoying control freak." Hellen smiled at the two, "This brings me to my next question, are you two an item?" They both shook their heads and Ally answered, "No, we're not dating. We're just really close friends." Hellen scoffed, "Really close friends that flirt and kiss. How do you explain that then?" She pointed on the image of them on their 'friendly' date showed on the screen behind them.

"We went out to dinner as friends, as simple as that," Austin stated. Some people in the audience booed at that. Hellen turned towards the crowd and asked them, "Do you ship Auslly?" The audience reacted in a loud cheer and started chanting 'Auslly.' Austin and Ally laughed. After the chanting subsided Hellen turned to face Ally, "I heard you broke up with your boyfriend a few months ago." Ally nodded and kept her reply as simple as possible, "It wasn't working out, so I decided to end it before it causes us both more pain."

Hellen nodded, "Was the break up before or after you met Austin?" Austin tried to reply, but Hellen interrupted, "You can wait for your turn, I have tons of questions for you." Austin slumped back and nodded knowing exactly what the questions are. "The break up was after I met Austin, but he had no part in it," Ally answered. "So you two don't have any feelings for each other, whatsoever?" Hellen asked. "We tried to see what it's like dating each other, but we agreed it would be better to stay friends," Ally said.

"You!" Hellen exclaimed pointing at Austin. "Me?" he pointed at himself. "Yes, you! Viewers are gonna kill me if I don't ask you this. What happened to you last year?" Hellen spoke. Ally watched him as he replied, "Last year was a rough year for me and I'm glad that it's over and now I can just be better." Hellen shook her head and insisted, "We know about that, but what happened that made you turn… well, mad?"

He sighed and decided to tell them everything, "My dad left when I was 12, I hate him for that. Last year, my mom called and told me that he wants to see me. I refused every time she brought it up and that caused many family fights. My sister and mom forgave him so they expect me to let him in as well. Between family arguments and work I was under a lot of stress and turned to alcohol. I felt better when I was drunk, and I would let my anger out on anyone I came across. My attitude changed and I became worse by the day. After a while, Dez, Elliot, and Ryder shook me out of that trance I was in and helped me quit these stuff. I still am working on getting better, but I believe I have make a lot of progress. I mean last time I had an interview, I punched the interviewer and walked out. But what everyone needs to know is that I changed. I miss performing so much and I can't wait to show my fans that I'm back better than before."

Hellen softly asked, "Did you forgive your father?" He shook his head, "No, it's my decision and no one can force me." Hellen smiled at him, "Anything to say to your fans?" Austin sighed, "I'm sorry for everything I've done, and I'm so thankful for everyone who stuck with me through it all. I promise I will make it up to you very soon."

* * *

Ally wrapped her arms around Austin in a tight hug and whispered, "You did great." He gently rubbed her back and replied, "Thanks. Why did you lie about the reason you dumped Scott for?" Ally pulled away and sighed, "I just don't feel ready to tell everyone about what I've been through. I'm supposed to be this angelic role model who helps girls believe in themselves when I can't even face my fear. I just need time." He took her hand and smiled, "I opened up to everyone, and so can you. I'm not telling you to do it now, take all the time you need." Ally smiled at him and tiptoed to kiss his cheek. Austin closed his eyes at the feeling of her lips on his cheek. "Thank you," Ally said. "You're welcome," he smiled.

* * *

 _3 months later…_

 _Miami…_

Ally walked around in her new home as she waited for Dez to arrive to fix her leaky sink. She been living her for a month only. They all moved back a month ago. Ally got a place close to her parents' so she could visit all the time. Dez and Trish got their own place. Austin dropped his comeback album and went on tour right after getting his own place. Ally hasn't talked to him ever since. After they finished promoting their album, they kind of drifted apart, not as close as before. Ally blamed their busy schedules.

The bell rang signaling Dez's arrival. Ally's breath hitched as she looked at the person standing in front of her. It wasn't Dez. "H-hey," he stuttered. "Austin," was all she managed to say. He rubbed the back of his neck nervously as he spoke, "Uh, Dez couldn't make it, so he sent me to fix your leaky sink. If that's okay with you." Ally swallowed and nodded, "Come in."

He walked into her house looking at the newly decorated home, "Nice place." Ally closed the door and walked behind him, "Thanks. Uh- the kitchen sink is leaking but I can't find the source." She led him to the leaky sink. He nodded and opened the cabinet under it revealing a watery mess. "I'm gonna need your tools… and a towel," he said.

Ally watched him as he worked under the sink and asked, "Aren't you supposed to be on tour?" She heard him reply from his position, "The tour ended. I came back yesterday. It was only a month long anyways." Ally nodded and wanted to say something, but she bit her lip to prevent that.

Ally walked him to the front door and stood still. He stood on her front porch in an awkward silence. It was as if they were never friends before. Ally suddenly remembered something, "I'm having a barbeque this Saturday and I invited my family and friends. I thought you'd be on tour by now, but since you're here, do you mind coming?" He thought for a second before nodding, "Yeah, I'll be there." He turned around and walked to his car before driving away. They both hated how fast they've become strangers.

* * *

 **I hope you liked this chapter. I'm not gonna be able to update for a while because I have finals then I'm going on vacation next week.**

 **Instagram: _austin. and. ally**


	18. It's Beautiful

**Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or any characters I didn't make up.**

* * *

Ally smiled at the perfect arrangement she did in her backyard. The barbeque was set up for her dad to take over, a table sat at the center, a hammock hung between two trees, and drinks were put in a cooler. All she had to do now is wait for her guests to arrive. She decided to spend the hour she had searching for something that has been on her mind for days. That something was indeed Austin.

She walked into her living room and turned her laptop on. Going on the search bar she typed ' _Austin Moon Tour 2016.'_ Many results popped up about his amazing comeback and how he apologized to everyone at the beginning of every show. One link that got her attention though was ' _Austin Moon Lets The Tears Fall In A Heartwarming Performance.'_

She clicked on it and an article as well as a video of the performance popped up. She skimmed the article to understand the reason of his crying. The article said that during the first song of the first show, his eyes teared up as he sung a song about everything that's happened to him, and he turned around after the song to quickly wipe the tears away. Austin later commented on that event and said that he missed performing for his fans and being the reason for everyone's joy and he was getting emotional because he didn't believe so many people stuck with him through that year.

She clicked on the back sign to go back to the results and chose another link titled _'Austin Moon Is Back Better Than Ever!'_ The link showed a list of images of his performances including his 'Austin _Moon Experience'_ performances which were his specialty apparently. These performances started in random places in the arena, among the crowd, or him standing on a platform carrying him and his backup dancers through the air over the audience. They included many details such as light shows and smoke and crazy stunts in each of these performances that Ally bet he spent everyday rehearsing.

She stopped scrolling and smiled at a picture of him having the time of his life on stage. Ally admired the big cute smile on his face and the passion he had for singing. She continued staring until the bell rung. She quickly slammed her laptop shut and raced to the door.

"Mom, Dad! I'm so glad you could make it," Ally exclaimed as she hugged each of her parents. "I'm gonna go check the barbeque, you and Mom prepare the meat," her dad, Lester, said after a while of talking in her living room. The ladies went to the kitchen and worked together while talking. "Who's coming too?" Penny, her mom, asked. "Trish is coming with her fiancé, Dez, and Austin should be here as well," Ally informed as she concentrated on her job. Ally stopped working when she noticed her mom has stopped doing her job and was smirking at her.

"What?" Ally asked dumbfounded. Penny leaned on the counter and teased her daughter, "Austin's coming?" Realization dawned Ally and she shook her head, "We broke up, Mom, we're just friends." Penny exclaimed, "Don't you think I know that?! But you still like him!" Ally sighed, "I haven't seen him or spoken to him properly in months, I think he got over it." Penny returned to her job and shrugged, "If that's what you think."

The bell rang again signaling the arrival of more guests, so Ally rushed to open the door. "Hey! It's been so long since I've seen you! Come in," Ally exclaimed before hugging Trish and Dez. "Hey! Austin's right behind us, he should be here soon," Dez said. The couple walked to the backyard where they met up with Ally's parents.

She stayed at the door watching as Austin's car parked in front of her house. She smiled at him walking up to her and hugged him tightly. "Someone missed me," he teased her while holding her. Ally rolled her eyes when they broke apart and punched his shoulder, "Don't act like you didn't miss me either." He laughed before nodding, "You got me there."

They walked together to the backyard and Ally introduced him to her parents, "Mom, Dad, this is Austin. Austin, this is my mom, Penny, and my dad, Lester." Austin shook hands with her parents and said hi to Trish and Dez. "So, Austin, what do you know about the grill?" Lester asked. "About as much as I know music, Sir," Austin smiled. Her dad seemed impressed as he took Austin to the grill and the two men set off bonding while preparing lunch. Ally glared at her mom who was smirking at her, "Stop it! He's gonna notice!" Penny said quietly as she watched her husband laugh with Austin, "You can't blame me. He's the first guy your father has ever gotten along with. At least he's decent unlike that old boyfriend you had."

* * *

Lester wiped his mouth and sat back in his chair, "Let's hear you two sing." Austin looked up from his plate and asked, "What?" Her dad repeated, "Let's hear you two sing. You have an album full of duets. Choose any song." Trish giggled next to Ally, "Do you know that if they sing, the rest of us will be third wheels?" Ally elbowed her best friend as Dez said, "I have my laptop with me. I could play the music so you can sing." Ally's mom chimed in, "Do it! We want to hear you sing." Austin shifted uncomfortably in his seat, and Ally turned to him, "You don't have to do it." He shook his head, "No-no. Let's do it."

 _So crazy is this thing we call love,_ **(1)** _  
And now that we've got it we just can't give up  
I'm reaching out for you,  
Got me out here in the water and I...  
I'm overboard  
And I need your love to pull me up  
I can't swim on my own  
It's too much  
Feels like I'm drowning without your love,  
So throw yourself out to me, my lifesaver._

They ended with perfect note, and the others clapped. Ally looked away from him and noticed her mom was smiling widely and her dad was telling Austin how good his voice was with hers.

* * *

Ally's mom hugged her and whispered in her ear, "By the way, Dez and Trish agree with me." Ally rolled her eyes and pulled away to hug her dad, "I like him. He's a keeper." Ally laughed at her dad as they drove away. Trish and Dez left earlier. Austin was cleaning up in the backyard. "Everyone left? Aw, I liked Lester," Austin whined. Ally laughed at him, "You'll see your new best friend, 'Lester,' again soon." Austin playfully glared at her.

"It was nice to see Dez and Trish again," Ally said as they sat in the living room. "Yeah, I actually saw them when I came back," he said. "Why didn't you call to tell me too then?" Ally asked. He winced, "I was too scared, I didn't know what to tell you." She looked at him confusedly, "How did you not know what to tell me? Just say 'Hey, Ally, I'm home from tour.'" He sighed, "I couldn't just call like that after distancing myself from you for 3 months."

"But you could just knock on my door late at night to fix my leaky sink?" Ally asked. "Sorry about that. But I did fix your sink," Austin said. Ally thought about what to say before she smiled, "Want to see something cool about me house?" Austin nodded and she led him to a room on the second floor, "You're one of the few people who know about this." She opened the door and he saw a wide room with paintings on the walls and stacks of more paintings on the floor, and empty canvases next to a stand with an unfinished painting on it.

"Woah…" he said in awe, "You painted these?" Ally nodded proudly, "It's not much, but it's something to get lost in when music won't help." He turned to her excitedly, "Are you serious?! These are incredible, Alls. You should sell these!" Ally laughed at his excitement, "No, this is something that I would like to keep to myself. Music sometimes gets ruined for me because I show it to the world and they pry at my personal life to know as much as they can. I like thinking that there is something they don't know about me. It's like my… secret."

Austin smiled goofily at her passionate look, "Paint something." Ally turned to him and furrowed her eyebrows, "Huh?" He shrugged and crossed his arms, "Paint something. Finish that painting over there." Ally looked at the almost complete work and thought why not. He watched her as she concentrated on mixing the right colors and painting perfectly with a soft smile. A while later, she was done, "Viola!" He stood behind her and look at the beautiful image she made.

A black figure of a couple kissing with a colorful umbrella over them was on the canvas. The rain drops were made up of negative words heard by the people when they see this couple. "Explain it to me," he whispered in her ear. "They are surrounded by negativity because they are dating," she explained, "the only thing protecting them from it is their love, this umbrella. Once this umbrella gets too used up, it will break, and the negativity will fall on them and pull them apart." Ally turned to him and he stared into her eyes, "It's beautiful." She glanced at his lips for a moment before looking into her eyes. Austin tried holding back before muttering, "Fuck it," and cupping her face and pulling her into a long needed deep kiss.

* * *

 **Overboard- Justin Bieber ft. Jessica Jarrell**


	19. Once Again

**I'm back! I'm finally home from vacation and I have tons of ideas for this story. It was the longest week of my life when I couldn't write more to this story. I'm the type of person who misses home two days into a trip, partly because there was no Wi-Fi at my hotel…**

 **Anyway, this story is about to get complex so if you have any questions or anything you didn't understand, please put it in a review or send it to me in a PM. I want you to really understand the meaning behind everything in this story. And now, without further delay…**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or any characters I didn't make up.**

* * *

Ally couldn't contain her excitement as she entered the small café to meet Trish to talk over the wedding. They had finished the planning and got the dresses, all that was left was just some last minute details. Her peach colored dress matched Austin's tie because Trish and Dez wanted the maid of honor and best man to match. The bride had her perfect dream wedding gown, and the groom had the sharpest tux he could find fitted for him.

The bridesmaids and groomsmen matched in blush pink, different from the maid of honor and best man. Everything about the wedding was thoroughly thought through. And Austin and Ally were responsible for deciding on many things; they also secretly planned a surprise for the engaged couple as a wedding present.

She hugged her best friend once she reached the table and took a seat ordering some fresh orange juice. "What's left from the wedding planning?" Ally asked as she sipped her tall glass. Trish put her now empty coffee mug down and replied, "Almost nothing. We still need to decide on the songs for the reception though, and the song for the slow dance is still unknown." Ally thought about it for a second before offering, "Austin and I could sing a song for your slow dance."

Trish looked relieved, "Are you sure that wouldn't bother you guys? I thought you would want a night off from the singing stuff." Ally shook her head, "It would be an honor to sing a song at my best friend's wedding. Plus, it would be nice to look back one day and know that I was part of the reception." Trish suddenly popped up, "Have you seen Austin lately? He came over this morning to go out with Dez to go wash his car and he was beaming with happiness. I don't think he's okay."

Ally bit her lip to stop the huge smile from forming, "Weeellll…" Trish leaned forward and furrowed her brows, "Uh oh, that was a long 'well.' What did you do?" Ally smiled widely before leaning close so that she didn't have to speak loudly and risk others hearing, "We got back together 2 days ago." Trish straightened up with wide eyes and a huge smile, "What? How? Where?"

Ally happily answered, "He stayed longer after you left and I showed him my paintings, one thing led to another and boom, we were kissing in the middle of my art room. He was so cute and nervous after we pulled away thinking he committed a crime and looked like a lost puppy. I had to kiss him again to stop him from stuttering. But we agreed to keep it a secret for a while." Trish confusedly asked why.

Ally shrugged and took the last sip from her orange juice, "We thought it would be better to focus on us at the beginning and not worry about what others think. Last time, I was almost punched by one of his fans and people said he was just taking advantage of me and was going to break me down. This time, we want to do it right, and to do that, we want to be able to take things step by step without the media swarming us."

Trish nodded, "I agree with you. I really hope it works out this time because come on, Auslly rules. Plus, it'll be less awkward to slow dance at the wedding and be each other's date. Can we now go out on double dates without you two fighting?" Ally shook her head, "We can only do that if it's done in a secret place or someone's house. We can't be seen in public together. That would spark rumors." Trish nodded understandingly, "Does that mean the event at your parents' house is back on?" Ally nodded happily.

* * *

Austin made his way to his backdoor where Ally had texted him that she was waiting. She came through the backdoor to decrease the chance of getting caught. "Woah," Austin exclaimed when he was tackled in a tight hug once he opened the door. He wrapped his arms tightly around her waist and picked her up and spun her around after he got over the shock.

Ally squealed as she felt herself being spun around in a pair of strong arms. "Hi," she mumbled with a smile when he put her down. He chuckled and kissed her cheek, "Hi." He gave her a tour of his new home showing her his simpler, smaller design. It was definitely smaller than his old house in LA but cozier. "How come this place is smaller than your house in LA?" she asked. He shrugged, "I got that house when I was younger and stupid with money. It didn't feel like home. This place is smaller and simpler but I feel comfortable in it. I still have a studio though."

Ally snuggled into his chest on his beige couch and asked, "Has your manager called you?" Austin replied into her hair, "About the music videos?" Ally nodded and heard him say, "Yeah. He said it's going to be a 2-day shoot here in Miami for each video."

Ally lifted her head to look at him, "Did he tell what songs we're doing?" Austin tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, "Secret Love Song and The Feeling." She nodded and leaned in to give him a kiss. "Guess we're working together once again," she smiled against his lips. He replied after kissing her forehead, "Guess we are."

* * *

 **This ended up being just a filler chapter but full of information;) I am actually kinda proud of how it turned out. Let me know how you felt about it in a review.**


	20. Good Impressions

**A new chapter because the last one wasn't long and I felt bad:)**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or any characters I didn't make up.**

* * *

Ally sat up in her bed at 1am with an annoyed sigh. She had been twisting and turning all night unable to sleep. She walked downstairs to her living room and turned the TV on. She hugged her knees to her chest and flipped the channels to find something that interested her.

She abruptly stopped when she saw a familiar mop of blonde hair. Ally put the remote down and noticed that it was one of Austin's movies being showed. Curious, she decided to watch it to see how well he acted.

By the end of the movie she was a sobbing mess as she watched the credits roll. Austin's character tragically died towards the end and his funeral was showed. His incredibly realistic acting convinced her he really died. She involuntarily thought of Austin actually dying and her having to stand at his funeral staring at his photo over his coffin.

She turned the TV off and cleaned up after herself after wiping her tears away. She went to her bed, but she didn't feel like she was going to sleep anytime soon with the image of that funeral in her mind. She took her phone and earphones and went on YouTube **(1)** and searched for Austin's official channel. She needed to feel calm.

She watched several of his music videos and interviews. Some had two guys she didn't recognize with him and Dez. She guessed they were Ryder and Elliot. Austin told her that she was going to officially meet them on the set of their music videos, next week. Apparently the four of them were working on another album to reform the band. Ally, being the supportive girlfriend she was, was okay that she wasn't going to see Austin as much as usual.

She closed her eyes and enjoyed the harmony of the background music and the singing appreciating every moment of vocals that seemed to relax her mind. She listened to almost all of the songs, Austin's and the band's, and finally felt relaxed enough to sleep. She dreamed of everything she watched that night and had the peaceful sleep she wanted.

* * *

Austin sat on the couch in his dressing room listening to the conversation among the guys as they waited to get called on set. "Where is this legendary girlfriend of yours?" Elliot asked sarcastically. "Hair and makeup. And don't embarrass me in front of her," Austin warned. Ryder pretended to be offended, "Us? Embarrass you? How can you say that? It's not like we're gonna have the burping contests we always have in front of her."

Austin glared at him as Dez piped up, "If you want to embarrass Austin, don't do it in front of her, I like her enough not to want her to run for the hills." A knock on the door interrupted them. Austin got up to open it but turned to the guys and spoke in a low voice, "That's her! Look presentable!" The guys smiled goofily at him and quickly brushed the pieces of potato chips off of them. "Got himself a girlfriend and he's suddenly jumpy and nervous about the level of cleanliness," he heard behind him but chose to ignore them.

"Well, hello there," Austin smiled as he kissed her cheek. Ally giggled, "Hey. We have 5 minutes till we have to be on set." He nodded, "Just enough time for you to meet the guys." He ushered her in and introduced her to Ryder and Elliot, "Ally, this is Ryder and Elliot. Guys, this is Ally."

Ryder and Elliot shook her hand and Elliot said, "Nice to finally meet the girl that Austin wouldn't stop talking about. Do you really make the best pancakes in the world?" Austin tried his best to quietly get him to stop talking from behind Ally by violently shaking his head and glaring at him. "Have you seen Austin doing his favorite hobby?" Ryder politely asked. Austin knew exactly what he meant and kept motioning Ryder to shut up and not do anything.

Ryder smirked before shaking his head, "Nah, I'm not gonna embarrass him today. Let's give him a break." Austin let out a sigh of relief and said, "Now you know what I have to deal with on a daily basis." Ally laughed, "I'm sure they mean well." Dez smiled, "You don't even know." Austin wanting to end the conversation they engaged in about his embarrassing moments exclaimed, "5 minutes are up! Ally, we need to get going!" He grabbed her wrist and pulled her out of the room before she could say anything.

Ally giggled, "What's got you so worked up?" Austin stopped and pulled her into a vacant room, "I don't know why I'm so snappy." She smiled and hugged him, "Relax, I like them." Austin leaned on the wall and shook his head, "It's not just that. My mom and sister also want to meet you, but I keep telling them it's too early. I don't want you to think we're taking it too fast."

Ally smiled, "I don't think we're taking it too fast. If your family wants to meet me, that's fine. You met mine a long time ago." He said, "But that was before we started dating." She said, "Technically, it was on the day we got back together. But still, I want to meet them, they seem nice." Austin nodded, "As long as you're comfortable with it." Ally tiptoed and placed and small kiss on his lips. "Let's go shoot this video," she said.

* * *

Ally knocked on the door of the house Austin told her to go to. They didn't come together to not get a crowd of paparazzi following them. Austin was coming over later. The door swung open and an older woman with blonde hair like Austin's exclaimed, "You must be Ally! I'm Mimi Moon. It's a pleasure to meet you!" Ally hugged the woman and replied, "It's so nice to meet you, Mrs. Moon. Austin's told me so much about you!" Mrs. Moon welcomed her into her beautiful home.

"It's a lovely home you have, Mrs. Moon. Were you the one who did Austin's house?" Austin's mom nodded, "He was never the one to care about how neatly things were placed." Ally laughed, "I agree!" A tall blonde girl came down the stairs, Ally guessed it was Cassidy. "Hi, I'm Cassidy. You must be Austin's girlfriend! It's a pleasure to meet you," his sister said as she hugged Ally. "I'm Ally, It's a pleasure to meet you too!"

They all took a seat in the living room. "How's he treating you?" Cassidy asked immediately. "He's treating me really well. Most people think otherwise because of his past," Ally replied. Mrs. Moon nodded, "I know. It's sad that he has to live with other people's opinions surrounding him. Thank God you showed up."

Ally confusedly asked, "Excuse me?" Cassidy answered, "He only got motivated to get better after he met you. The guys tried really hard to help him, but he shut everybody out." Ally said, "He never told me that." Mimi said, "He never told anybody that, we sensed it. He's happier now." Ally smiled at the thought of her helping him like that. "Have you met the guys yet?" Cassidy asked. Ally nodded, "Yeah, Dez happens to be my best friend's fiancé, so I met him before the others. I only met Ryder and Elliot last week."

"Did they try to embarrass him?" Cassidy smiled knowingly. Ally giggled, "A little, but they were funny." His sister laughed, "They mean well. Elliot is actually my boyfriend." Ally said, "Austin told me about that once. And Ryder's girlfriend is called… um…" Cassidy finished for her, "Kira, my best friend." Ally said, "I have to meet her now. And you should totally meet Trish, my best friend."

Cassidy asked, "Trish? As in Dez's fiancée?" Ally nodded. "You met the guys on the set of your new music video right?" Cassidy questioned. "Yeah, Austin told you about that?" Cassidy nodded, "When does it come out?" Ally tried to remember, "One comes out in 3 weeks and the other a month after it I think." His sister smiled, "I can't wait to see them."

The door was knocked signaling that Austin was here. "Hey, Cass," Austin said hugging his sister. "I like her," she whispered into his ear. He smiled and hugged his mom as well. "How's she?" he asked his mom. Mimi smiled, "I don't remember the last time I liked your girlfriend this much."

They walked into the living room where Ally was waiting. "He hugged his girlfriend, "You're so quiet," he teased her. She rolled her eyes, "I need to make a good impression." He winked at her, "Don't worry, they like you." They sat down in the living room. Ally sat next to Austin and he put his arm around her shoulders. They set off in a funny conversation about the things Austin used to do when he was a kid. Austin threw his head back in embarrassment as Ally laughed at him. "Why would you eat ice cream off your pants?" Austin shrugged, "There wasn't a sign that said I couldn't"  
The doorbell rang again. "Mom, you waiting for someone else?" Austin asked. Mimi rushed to the door, "Kind of." Cassidy rushed to the door too. "Hey, Dad," they heard Cassidy say. Austin's smile dropped and he became rigid. "Is that…?" Ally reluctantly asked. "Mike Moon," Austin said through gritted teeth.

* * *

 **Here comes trouble…**

 **(1) I don't own Youtube.**


	21. Mike Moon

**I'm thinking about making another one shot… probably.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or any characters I didn't make up.**

* * *

 _Last time…_

 _The doorbell rang again. "Mom, you waiting for someone else?" Austin asked. Mimi rushed to the door, "Kind of." Cassidy rushed to the door too. "Hey, Dad," they heard Cassidy say. Austin's smile dropped and he became rigid. "Is that…?" Ally reluctantly asked. "Mike Moon," Austin said through gritted teeth._

Austin stood up and crossed his arms with a very upset expression that scared Ally who was standing next to him with a concerned expression. Ally noticed how dark his eyes became and how locked his jaw in anger. A tall man emerged from the foyer along with a nervous Mimi and an anxious Cassidy. "Austin!" the man, Mike Moon, exclaimed with happiness, "Oh, how much you've grown, my son!"

Austin ignored him and snapped at his mom and sister, "What the hell? You knew I didn't want to see him!" Mimi spoke with a scared voice, "Please, Austin, you have to hear him out. He's your father-"

Her attempt to calm her son didn't work as Austin angrily interrupted, "My father? And what exactly qualifies him for that title? The fact that he walked out on us? Or that he left us with no financial aid whatsoever? Maybe the fact that he never tried to contact one of his children. Until 10 years later, he suddenly wants to be a part of our lives. And you two naively let him in."

Cassidy attacked her brother, "You don't think I was mad at him too?! I had to give up so many things because of him! But if you just listen to what he has to say, maybe you'll see that you're not always right!" Her father quietly spoke, "Calm down, sweetie, don't yell at him like that. I understand why he won't listen and I agree that it's my fault. If he just gives me a chance-"

"Give you a chance?" Austin asked dryly. "You walked out on us when we all needed you, when we needed our dad," Austin sneered and raised his voice, "I was 12 years old and working 2 jobs after school! I only slept 2 hours everyday! Mom had to get the most humiliating jobs for us! Cassidy had to grow up too early and deal with problems she shouldn't have to deal with so young! All that to support the family you couldn't support! We were almost homeless! Because of your irresponsibility, we lost our childhood. And you're telling me to give you a chance?"

Ally felt like she was interfering with a very personal family fight. She wanted to leave, but she wasn't about to leave Austin like that. She was hearing some new information from him. She felt Austin shake with anger next to her, so she put her hand on his arm and soothingly said, "Calm down, breathe."

He looked at her and his face softened a little. He turned his back to everyone and ran he hand through his hair in frustration letting out a deep breath.

"I know you all suffered because of me. But I had to, believe me, I had to leave to keep you all safe," his father explained with a stressed out expression, "All I ever wanted was to be part of my children's lives. Your sister and mother listened to me, why can't you? I missed too much of my son's life, I don't want to miss anymore."

Austin harshly spoke, "You weren't part of my life then, you won't be part of my life now." He took Ally's hand and led her to the front door where they got their stuff and left. Ally sat in the passenger's seat of his car as she waited for him to calm down. He leaned his head on the steering wheel and took deep breaths. Austin felt a small hand rubbing his back and a voice whispering, "Let it out, let it out." He leaned back and looked at her, "I'm sorry for scaring you. I really didn't know he was coming."

Ally gave him a reassuring smile, "It's okay, I don't blame you. But you know what I think you should do?" He looked expectedly at her, "I think you should listen to him. Hear him out. Maybe he has a good reason." Austin looked ahead of him shaking his head, "No, no. I really don't want to talk about this right now." She nodded and hugged him tightly, knowing that he needed it, "Everything's gonna be okay." He hugged her tighter at these words and nodded.

* * *

 _Several days later…_

 _Thursday…_

Ally walked across the parking lot to get to her car. She was at the studio to use its instruments to write a new song that has been stuck in her mind for days. After the whole incident at Austin's mom's house, she and Austin each went their separate ways as Austin said he 'needed to be alone.' She received a call from Cassidy telling her to meet her at a small café downtown later to talk about something important. Ally had a feeling it was about their father.

Ally abruptly stopped when something familiar catches her eye. Color drains from her face as she hurries towards her car. _'It can't be,'_ she thought in fear of the silver BMW in the parking lot as well. She heard footsteps behind her as she quickens her pace. She yelped when she felt a hand grasp her arm tightly and turn her around.

"Well, hello, missy," he sneered in her face. Ally whimpered from the pain from his tight hold, "Let go of my arm." He tightened his grip even more, "You deserve it. This and more." She suddenly got a burst of courage as she exclaims, "Me? What did I do to you? Did I physically and sexually assault you for months? Did I beat you everyday? Did I-?" She gasped from the pain as she struggles to not double over. "What did you do?!" he yelled, "All these restraining orders and publicity! That's what you did! Nobody even looks at me now! And it's all your fault!"

Ally tried to pry her arm from him before he does anything worse but she couldn't. "Now," he sneered inches from her face, "You have to pay." Ally shook with fear at what he's gonna do. "What's the matter? Waiting for that little boyfriend of yours to show up and save the day?" he teased her, "I would love to see him and give him a lesson for touching my girl."

"Hey! What are you doing there?!" a security guard finally notices from the distance. He runs over to them and Scott finally drops her arm to fight off the guard. Ally quickly looks around to see if anybody else saw and runs to her car and drives off.

After driving a good distance away from the studio she pulls over to take a breath. _'How did he know I was here?'_ she thought as she held her head her hands. She stays like that for several minutes before letting out a breath and reaching to the backseat for her jacket to cover the forming bruise on her arm.

She resumes her drive to the café and works on getting over her shock to not get Cassidy concerned and tell Austin immediately. She spots Cassidy as soon as she walks in and heads to her table. "Hey," Ally smiled as she hugged her. "Hey," Cassidy said. "Are you okay? You're kinda shaking," she said once they sat down. "I'm fine, just a little cold," Ally lied with a fake smile that Cassidy seemed to have bought. "So, why did you need to see me?" she changes the subject. "Right, so you know about…" Cassidy starts explaining.

* * *

 **This chapter is very action packed…**

 **I'll update really soon, I have a lot of free time these days.**


	22. Breakfast Discussions

**Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or any characters I didn't make up.**

* * *

Ally hurried to the door and opened it to let Austin in quickly before anyone sees him. He caged her to the now closed door and smiled, "Good morning, princess." She leaned on her tiptoes and kissed him deeply. "Good morning," she said as she escaped his arms and walked to the kitchen, "Breakfast is ready." He followed her and stared at the delicious food she prepared, "I thought I was the only one coming for breakfast."

She laughed, "You are the only one, but I didn't want to serve just one thing." He wrapped his arms around her waist, "You could make smoked tires and I would still eat them, as long as it's your cooking." She scrunched her nose in disgust, "Smoked tires? You couldn't think of something more appetizing?" He chuckled and they sat down to have their meal.

"How's the album coming?" she asked as she sipped on her orange juice. He swallowed his food and replied, "It's coming good. We're trying new things, adding new sounds to the songs this time, but I think the results will be amazing." Ally nodded, "Will I hear anything before it comes out?" He rolled his eyes, "You said the same thing about my last album." She whined, "But I didn't get to listen to it like you promised." He winced at her high pitched tone that seemed annoying to both of them, "Alright, you'll hear it once it's recorded." She gave him a big triumphant smile.

"By the way, my manager knows about us now," she informed him as she finished her plate. He seemed alarmed, "Oh God, what did she say?" Ally looked serious, "She said that we can't keep this up for too long before people start getting suspicious, and that we need to agree on a time to come out to the public soon."

He sighed, "I know it isn't long until everyone catches us, even I'm annoyed that I can't take you out on dates or even hold your hand in public, and all this secrecy and sneaking is without doubt my least favorite part of it all. But I still like it that we can hang out and not have a million people judge us. I mean how do you feel?"

Ally bit her lip, "I want to have a normal relationship, Austin. This isn't what I want. I know that it's nice to be able to walk in the street and not get bombarded by people, but it's not nice that I can't tell people that you're my boyfriend. I feel like we're constantly lying to others, and that's not a good feeling."

Austin nodded, "I understand. I want everyone to know you're my girlfriend and stop trying to steal you away from me. Let's have some time for ourselves and we can come out in public later."

She asked, "How about we make our debut in your album release party?"

He looked at her as if he wasn't listening, "Huh, oh, yeah. My album release party. Sure."

Ally smiled accomplishedly and stood up to clean up. Austin excused himself to the bathroom as she placed the dishes in the dishwasher. He walked past her art room but retracted his steps when he noticed the door was open. "She must've been painting," he muttered to himself as he went inside to look at her most recent painting.

He furrowed his eyebrows in confusion at the almost too depressing image she painted. It spoke sadness and fear all over it with the grey colors. He shook his head and went to the bathroom.

He leaned on the kitchen's doorframe and watched her turn on the dishwasher. Her jacket fell off her shoulder and something caught Austin's eye. She smiled at him oblivious to her jacket and walked past him into the living room, "Come on, I have a few movies we can watch."

She was stopped when a hand grasped her wrist. She turned around to find a serious and determined Austin. "What happened to your arm?" he spoke firmly. Ally looked at her arm and noticed her jacket fell off her shoulder. She quickly put it back on and swallowed, "Nothing, I just fell."

She pulled her wrist from his hold and continued her walk to the couch. "Don't play that shit with me," she heard behind her, "there's no way you get a bruise like that from falling. What. Happened. To. You?" Ally faced him and stayed quiet, too scared to talk.

"Ally, talk to me," he insisted, "Who hurt you like that?" She fiddled with her fingers and said in a barely audible voice, "Him." His eyes widened and he exclaimed, "Scott found you?! How the hell did he do that?! Why didn't you tell me?!" Ally wrapped her arms around herself and looked down, fearing to look into his eyes and see how angry he was.

Austin noticed that and spoke softly, "Alls," she raised her head at his gentle tone, "when did that happen?" She swallowed, "Yesterday." He tried to stay calm, "What did he tell you?" She dropped her arms and sighed trying not to cry, "H-he said that I need to get punished for the restraining order. I knew he was going to punish me like he used to. Thank God a security guard stepped in."

Austin felt fire in his blood, "Why didn't you tell me?" She looked at him, "I couldn't. You have your own issues with your family right now. I couldn't throw this on you." He couldn't believe what she was saying, "How can you think that you can't talk to me? Ally, you can tell me anything. I don't care if I had the entire world's problems on my shoulders, I still care about you."

She nodded and whispered, "I'm sorry." Austin looked at her and calmed down, "Come here, Alls." She ran to his open arms and hugged him tightly letting several tears fall. "Did you report him?" She shook her head, "No, please don't. I don't want more spotlight on this. I'll just be careful when I'm alone." He nodded wanting to stop her tears, "Okay." He wiped her tears and rested his forehead on hers. "Now I know what your painting was about," he smiled. She smiled back and kissed his cheek.

"Hey," he said to get her attention, "Didn't you say you have a few movies we can watch?" She smiled and nodded leading him to the couch.

* * *

 **Totally not proud of this chapter…**

 **Enjoy this until I get more ideas for the next chapter;)**


	23. Family Day Out

**I have been working on this chapter for a week now. It's not that I have writer's block, I have tons of ideas, it's that I never had enough time to finish it! It's Ramadan right now, so I'm a little busier than usual for some reason. Anyway, finally after a week, here's a chapter:)** **  
Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or any ****characters I didn't make up.**

* * *

"I really don't understand why you won't just do it!" Ally exclaimed as she followed him to his living room. "Ally, just let it go," he growled as he turned to face her. "I don't want you to regret never spending time with him just because you're so stubborn," she said. He was being stubborn. They have been at it for at least half an hour and neither of them was happy.

Cassidy had explained to her the entire situation with her father and Ally was now on their side. But he had to hear the information she was told from his dad. His parents and sister had organized a family day to get Austin to come. Only Austin refused to come.

After a few minutes of back and forth arguing he snapped, "Fine! But on one condition." Ally nodded for him to continue, grateful that they're so close to the end of the fight. "I'll go with them only if you promise me that you'll report Scott to the police for the other day." Ally stepped back thinking over what he proposed. She almost didn't agree but then remembered what Cassidy had told her. She had to do this for him.

He felt bad for doing this to her, but if he had to do something he didn't want to do, so did she. She looked up at him and nodded, "Okay. But you go out with your family first, then I'll go to the police." He nodded approvingly, "Fine by me."

They were interrupted by her phone ringing. "Hey, Cass," she said cheerfully, "Yeah, he just agreed." She walked out of the room to talk to his sister. He could hear her happily talking about him agreeing. Austin smirked to himself at the little loophole he found in their deal.

Ally said he had to go out with his family, she didn't say that he had to actually talk to his father. He wasn't about to tell her that though, he wanted her to do her part of the deal.

* * *

"Hey," Mrs. Moon smiled as she let her son in. "Hey, Mom," he said slipping off his sunglasses. He walked further to the living room to see the other two sitting smiling at him.

"Austin, nice to see you," his father smiled, "Good to know I won't be the only guy today."

Austin gave him a small glance before turning to his mom, "When are we leaving?" Mimi looked at the clock before deciding, "We should leave now if we want to be there in time for the sunset."

They all left the house and headed for the car. Austin headed to his own car before being pulled by his sister to their dad's car. "We go out as a family, we ride in the same car as a family," she reminded him smiling.

Austin hated how happy everyone looked in the car. If someone looked at the family riding in this car, they would think of them as a perfect happy family. Austin knew they were nowhere near perfect. He wasn't happy sitting in the backseat as this stranger he had to call dad drove. He wasn't happy at how his mom sat next to the driver talking like a cheery wife to her dedicated husband. He wasn't happy his sister was gladly joining the conversation with her dad when she had to be mad at him, like himself.

"Austin, your mother says you're a good surfer. Who taught you?" his dad asks trying to get him to talk. _'Not you,'_ he wanted to say but didn't want his mom to get upset so he stuck to a simple, "A surfing instructor."

"I'm a good surfer as well. Maybe we could go surfing together sometime," Mike spoke. Austin plainly hummed a response and resumed staring out the window.

Austin stuck to short comments to the conversation during lunch never even looking to left where his dad was seated. He knew his mom and sister were annoyed with him for not attempting to get closer to his father, but he could care less at this point.

Mike Moon has tried really hard to get him to look at him by asking him to pass the salt and asking him questions about himself. Austin never gave him too much information to prevent him from getting to know his son.

It was hard for Austin to keep a straight face or not get interested in the conversation. Mike Moon turned out to have a great sense of humor and an interesting personality. Austin hated that he could see similarities between him and his father.

It wasn't until Mimi and Cassidy excused themselves to the restroom that Austin felt his plan weakening. He knew they did this on purpose. He felt overwhelmed with relief when Ally called.

"Hey, babe," he smiled pressing his phone to his ear.

"Hey," she cheerfully replied, "how's things going?"

He shrugged, "Fine, I guess."

"How are things going with your dad? Are you getting to know him?" she asked. Austin answered while refusing to look in his dad's direction, "Yeah."

She hummed knowingly, "Then why did Cassidy just call me and tell me that you're barely talking to him and even ignoring him?" He closed his eyes for a moment mentally cursing his sister, "Ally, I-"

"We had a deal, Austin! You do your part and I do mine. I trusted you to talk to your dad like you said you would. And because I trusted you, I was on my way to the police station, but then Cass called and I immediately turned around," she interrupted angrily.

He sighed and stood up to walk away from their table, "You know how much I hate this man, Alls. You know how angry I am at him. You can't just expect me to-"

"But I do! You know how terrified I am of reporting him, but I'm doing it for you! You promised! I want you to talk to him for your own good! I don't want you to regret shutting him out one day!" she exclaimed.

Austin sighed and ran a hand through his hair, "Fine! I'll try to be nice! But I can't promise you anything."

"You already promised that you were gonna talk to him, but you broke that. Talk to your father, Austin, or I'm not reporting him anytime soon," she hung up.

Austin looked down at his phone for a moment trying to calm down before going back to the table. He slumped into his chair and carelessly threw his phone on the table. "Women, right?" his dad tried to lighten the mood. Austin just hummed a response as their bill got to their table.

His dad immediately reached for the bill but Austin snatched it quickly. "I'll pay. I always pay," he murmured as he fished his wallet out of his pocket.

Austin was always the one to pay for their meals when they went out before Mike Moon came along. His mom and sister always tried to stop him, but he always had a way to pay it himself. His excuse was always that they shouldn't spend their money when he was around, he felt responsible for them.

"I'm so proud of how you've become, Austin," his dad commented. Austin glanced at him and wanted to say, ' _You were never there to see me grow up, so you have no right to say that,'_ he knew that if he said that, his mom, sister, and Ally would be upset, so he instead said, "Thanks."

After his mom and sister came back, they all went down to the beach for a walk and watch the sunset. While the rest of his family were standing together staring at the sinking sun while having a what seemed to be a funny conversation, Austin was standing some distance away throwing rocks into the water.

"That's a good throw you got there," his dad commented as he walked up to him. Austin threw another rock as he said, "It's all in the wrist." That surprised both of them. That was the first loud-spoken sentence he's said to him. Mike seemed to be overjoyed by it, but Austin tried to ignore it.

"I've been meaning to talk to you about something," his dad said when Austin ran out of rocks. "If it's about why you left, save it. I'll still be mad at you no matter what your explanation is," Austin spoke firmly.

His mom and sister were standing a few feet away from them watching them with smiles, probably thinking that this was going great.

His father seemed desperate, "Please, Austin, I really want you to know everything. I want to be in your life with no secrets. Just hear me out, I know you'll understand. You're just like me, stubborn and strong minded-"

Austin's head snapped up at this and he got closer to him. "Let's get one thing straight," he angrily spat, "you and I will never be the same." Austin walked away from them in anger and hailed a cab to his mother's house to get his car. He couldn't be near that man anymore.

* * *

Austin drove to Ally's house as he practiced what he was going to say. He knew she was mad at him, but he had his own good reasons. He knew that if she just listened to him, she wouldn't try to force him to listen to his dad anymore.


	24. Announcements

**I'm baaaack! Kinda… I'm still gonna take several days to write a chapter. Hard to believe I was actually faster doing this during school.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or any characters I didn't make up.**

* * *

"Why did you get mad when he said you're just like him?" Ally asked confusedly crossing her legs as she leaned into the headboard of her bed. Austin lifted his head and looked at her, "You don't get it, do you?" She slowly shook her head.

He sat on the edge of the bed with his back to her, "If I'm just like him, then that means I'll run away from my responsibilities like him. I don't want to walk out on my family one day. That's my biggest fear."

He felt her sit beside him and put a hand on his shoulder. "But you're walking away from your problems anyway. Isn't that kinda like what he did?" she carefully asked. Austin's head snapped up in shock before closing his eyes and shaking his head, "He's the only problem I'm avoiding to prevent getting to know him and become like him."

Ally softly spoke next to him, "I understand what you're saying, but don't you feel a connection when you're with him? Cass said that's what made her forgive him."

He looked down and swallowed, "That's also why I'm avoiding him. For years, I've told myself that the moment I see him I'm gonna make him feel all the pain he made us go through, that I hate him, that he'll never be my father again. And now he's here, and it's like he never left. I feel so tempted to talk to him about my life and get to know him, but I stop. I always stop. I can't let myself fall for his act like my mom and Cass. I know he'll hurt us again."

Ally couldn't help but defend his father, "What if it's not just an act?! Maybe he left because he was forced to! Listen to him. He wants to explain everything but you push him away!"

Austin looked at her uncertain, "Do you know something I don't?" She looked at him apologetically, "Maybe. But you need to hear it from him, not me."

He sighed and looked at his feet, "Can we not talk about this now?" Ally decided to let it go just for tonight and smiled, "Let's get things off your mind tonight." She climbed into his lap and kissed him deeply. He smiled into the kiss and held her closer.

* * *

Ally slipped her silk robe on and went downstairs to find a very happy Austin walk up to her. Ally looked at him with a smile, "What's got you so happy?" He looked at his phone in his hand and at Ally again with a huge smile, "I got it." She laughed, "Elaborate, please."

"I got it. I got the part. The directors loved me and they want me to be in the movie!" he exclaimed. It took Ally several seconds to catch up before tackling him in a hug and exclaiming, "Oh my God, Austin, this is huge! I'm so proud of you!"

Austin told her about auditioning for a movie several months ago and how bad he wanted the role. He chuckled into the hug, "Thanks, Alls."

They pulled away and walked to the kitchen where breakfast was set. "Uh, Ally?" he asked nervously behind her. "Yeah?" she turned to face him. "About last night, you don't have any regrets about going all the way, right?" he rubbed the back of his neck. Ally smiled, "Absolutely no regrets." He sighed in relief as they took their seats.

"Mhmmm, this is delicious!" Ally moaned as she ate the food Austin prepared. "You didn't think I could cook, did you?" he laughed. She shyly shook her head no, "I always told my mom that I'll only love a man that cooks, I was right." She was oblivious to what she just said until she saw Austin freeze, "I-uh, I mean-"

He smiled and interrupted her, "I love you too."

* * *

To celebrate Austin getting the role he wanted, they decided to invite everyone to lunch to break the news. They had a private room prepared for them at the restaurant.

Cassidy took Ally and Trish to meet Kira, who came with Ryder. "Trish, Ally, this is Kira," Cassidy smiled. Kira gasped immediately, "Ally Dawson? Trish De La Rosa? Remember me from middle school?" Trish and Ally stared at her confusedly before Trish exclaimed, "Oh, yeah! Kira! I didn't recognize you without the braces and glasses."

Ally kept trying to remember her like Trish, but she didn't succeed. Kira smiled, "I was your library partner, Ally." She stared at her for a second before exclaiming, "You were the one that always recommended books for me!" Cassidy happily interjected, "So you're already friends! That's great!"

Meanwhile, Austin was busy introducing his parents to Ally's while ignoring his father's attempts to talk to him. Her parents were previously informed about the situation with Austin's father by Ally to not say something inappropriate for them.

Everyone congratulated Austin when he told them his big news. It almost seemed as if his family was more excited than him. After they took their seats Elliot asked, "Where are you shooting this movie?"

Austin replied, "It's two months in Vancouver. We start shooting in September." Trish nodded in relief, "So you'll be here for the wedding." He smiled, "Wouldn't miss it for the world."

Ally curiously asked, "What is it about?"

He replied as their meals arrived, "It's about a guy, Luke, played by me, who is in a successful dance group that he leads. He meets a girl with a kidney disease and falls in love with her. He finds out through her family that she loves dancing, so he gets her to agree to join his group for the contest they sign up for. From then on, it's basically problems with some of his teammates who disagree with his choice to bring her because they think her illness won't let them win and issues with her health and other problems that make them question their relationship."

"Aww. So you're gonna be the nice guy here," Ryder teased him. Kira slapped his arm and asked, "Who's playing your love interest?" Dez laughed, "Yeah, who's the girl Ally's gonna have to be okay with for kissing her boyfriend?"

Austin answered, "They're still holding auditions for the love interest. Which reminds me," he turned to Ally, "Ally?" She stared at him confusedly before asking, "What?" He carefully repeated himself, "They're still holding auditions for the love interest."

Ally's eyes widened as she understood what he meant before exclaiming, "No! No! I-I don't act." Everyone at the table booed her as Austin whined, "Come on! I want you to be with me in this movie!" Mrs. Dawson commented, "Yeah, Ally, it would be fun."

Ally shook her head, "Sorry, but I'm not an actress, but I'll still have a small part in this movie." He looked at her in confusion, "What?" She smiled, "I was requested to record a song for the soundtrack, so I'll be on set for a day or two. I'm also working on a single right now." Mr. Dawson proudly laughed, "Anyone else has something to announce?!"

Mr. Moon responded, "Actually, since everyone is here, we do." Austin quietly groaned at hearing him talk resulting in getting punched in the shoulder by Ally.

Cassidy leaned forward in worry, "Mom, Dad, everything okay?" Mrs. Moon looked at her kids nervously before explaining, "With everything that's been happening, we found it appropriate to try to ignite the spark once again, and we want to tell you something."

She raised her hand showing everyone a ring on her finger, "We're getting married again." Ally jumped from her seat when Austin furiously stood up causing his chair to fall over. "WHAT?!" he bellowed as everyone stared in fear at him.


	25. Someday

**I don't usually reply to reviews but I'm breaking the rules this time…**

 _ **Izahid69: Hey just wondering because you mentioned Ramadan, but are you Muslim? Don't worry, if you are, I'm not prejudiced or anything, actually I am Muslim, so I was just wondering if I wasn't the only one.**_

 **Yes, I am Muslim. I hope that isn't a problem. I am a human being after all. If you're so bothered by it, look at me as just another author of an A &A fanfic. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own A &A or any characters I didn't make up.**

* * *

 _She raised her hand showing everyone a ring on her finger, "We're getting married again." Ally jumped from her seat when Austin furiously stood up causing his chair to fall over. "WHAT?!" he bellowed as everyone stared in fear at him._

Mr. and Mrs. Moon quickly stood up trying to calm their son down. "Austin, please, just hear us out," Mike pleaded. Austin glared at his parents, "You didn't even tell me you're dating! Is this how it's gonna be, Mom? You won't tell me anything anymore? How about you don't tell me about the wedding then? Just go get secretly married to the man that hurt you for years behind my back. It's not like I care anymore. I tried protecting you, but you won't listen."

His father tried to say something but Austin interrupted, "Not a word, Mike. I need some air." Everyone watched in silence as he walked out of the room.

His mom fell to her seat as tears streamed down her cheeks, "I really thought he would understand, I really did. He just won't listen!" Her fiancé sat next to her trying to calm her down. "I'm going to go talk to him," Ally announced. "No," Dez interjected, "I will. No offence, Ally, but I think he needs someone who was with him when his problems started when he was younger."

Ally understandably nodded to him and he left to find Austin. She noticed Mimi and calmed down by now and everyone was congratulating the couple on their engagement. She walked to them and hugged them both, "Congrats, Mr. and Mrs. Moon, I hope you really enjoy your time together this time. And don't worry about Austin. He'll come around. I know him."

The couple appreciatively thanked her and Mimi asked, "Would you be one of my bridesmaids, Ally?" She smiled and nodded, "I would love to."

Everyone took a seat again and talked about the wedding trying to lighten up the mood. "When are you planning to get married?" Cassidy asked. Mike smiled, "We want to get married in August. It's gonna be a small wedding."

Ally's mom commented, "Tell me if you want to have an outdoor wedding. I have the perfect spot for that." Mimi thanked her for the offer. Elliot smirked, "You got a lot of groomsmen for this wedding, Mike. Who's gonna be the best man?"

Austin's dad rolled his eyes knowing exactly what they wanted to hear, "I had to make the _hardest_ decision of my life, all of you are really close to me," Ryder interrupted with a smirk, "Good answer." Mike continued, "But I want my son to be my best man."

Elliot leaned closer to the table, "Not seeing the tear of sadness that you couldn't choose me." Ryder agreed, "Yeah, where are the tears?" Mike pretended to be crying until the whole table erupted to laughter.

Ally smiled at how close the guys seemed to be with Mike. She wondered if Austin actually let him in, would they be like that? Or closer, perhaps?

After a while of light conversations with a hint of tension and worry, Dez and Austin walk back in. Everyone falls silent as Austin nervously asks, "Mom, can I talk to you for a sec?"

Ally kept glancing at the two in the corner talking to see if things were going well. Dez came up behind her, "Don't worry, I talked to him."

Ally laughed, "Well, this is Austin we're talking about. Is he gonna listen?" He shrugged, "I hope. Though, from what I see, things are going well over there."

She glanced at her boyfriend and his mom to see them smiling before hugging tightly. Cassidy and Kira came up beside her, "He's stubborn as hell, but when it comes to his mom's happiness, he's ready to do anything." Cassidy and Ally nodded in agreement to Kira's comment.

Austin watched his mom walk away and his father getting closer to him. He smiled, "Austin, I'm so glad you're on the same page as us.

Austin rolled his eyes, "Yeah, yeah, listen, Mike," he got closer to the man in front of him, "I only agreed for my mom's happiness. I can easily change my mind in a heartbeat. You wanna marry her, listen to me," his father nodded with wide eyes, "you will not hurt her like last time. You won't walk out on her once you find out it's too much. If I ever see her crying because of you, even one tear, and I'll make sure you never come close to us. Understand?"

Mike nodded before adding desperately, "I really hope this brings us closer." Austin carelessly said, "Think what you want. It's not happening. I know who you truly are," before walking away.

He caught his sister watching the whole conversation with his dad from the corner of his eyes and knew she wasn't happy about it, but he didn't care what she was going to say.

* * *

Ally climbed into her bed with her earphones on later that night. It had become a habit for her to listen to Austin's songs before sleep to help her sleep better. Sometimes she stays up late watching his music videos. Her favorite music video is his most recent, ' _I'll Show You.'_

It showed the bad phase he went through from his perspective and how stressed he got before concerts. She liked it because she thought it showed his _human_ side, not the perfect heartthrob every magazine and interview showed.

She noticed a video of an interview of Austin and the guys recommended for her. It must be new since it was only uploaded a week before. She read the very interesting title to her, _'Austin Moon Confirms He Is Single.'_

' _There have been some events linking you to your ex-coworker, Ally Dawson. Rumor has it you two are an item,' the interviewer said. Austin and the guys laugh nervously. He replied, 'These events must be when she comes along with her best friend who happens to be Dez's fiancée. I don't know who started the rumor, but I can assure you it's false. Not every girl I hang out with is my girlfriend.'_

 _Dez agreed, 'It's true. Ally is wonderful company and comes along with my fiancée sometimes when we hang out. She and Austin are nothing more than friends.'_

Ally noticed how uncomfortable Elliot looked at the conversation as if he didn't like lying.

 _Ryder went along with it, 'Yeah, and she and our girlfriends get along great, so they invite her most of the times.' The interviewer playfully frowned, 'So there's no chance that we ever see some real life Auslly action?' Austin laughed as he shook his head, 'She's amazing, but not my type. She's more like a sister to me.'_

Ally stopped the video to look at how comfortable he said these words, as if they weren't lies. She shook her head to stop the feelings. It's not like he really meant them, he has to say that to keep their relationship a secret. No matter how much she told herself that, she couldn't stop the hurt from taking over.

* * *

Austin hurried to get the door in only his sweats and messy hair while groaning at his sleep being cut short. He rarely got to sleep in, so when he had the chance, he sleeps until noon. Today was an exception though seeing as the doorbell interrupted his peaceful sleep.

He opened the door to see his sister standing in front of him sternly. He winced at how she pushed herself past him into his home. He closed the door and followed her to the living room, "I'm gonna get an earful, won't I?"

She turned to face him angrily, "Yes! Because you deserve it! Mom is extremely worried about you because of how you've been acting with Dad lately!"

He growled, "He's not our dad, don't call him that." She exclaimed, "Yes, he is! If you give him a chance that is! He tries so hard to get you to listen to his explanation, but you're so stubborn! Trust me, once you hear him out, everything will fall into place and you'll want him to be your dad again. That's what happened to me!"

His head snapped up, "Well, I'm not you, okay, Cass? I'm not gonna let this man who destroyed us back into my life just because he's back! Have you ever thought why he suddenly came back after we started getting loads of money from my career? The man's only here for money! He'll leave us again, and when that happens, I'll have to scrape all the pieces together again. I'm avoiding the inevitable."

Cassidy asked weakly, "What makes you think he'll leave us again?" He shrugged, "I just know it." He watched as tears pooled in her eyes as his words sunk in before stretching his arms, "C'mere, Cass."

She hugged her brother tightly and spoke, "I don't want him to go. He's the best father in the world." Austin couldn't understand her point of view as he thought the complete opposite but just hugged his sister tighter.

"Will you please just hear him out? It breaks my heart to see him so stressed," she mumbled.

Austin sighed not wanting to make her even more upset, "Someday, Cass, someday." She asked, "When's that?"

He replied, "Someday."


	26. The Beach House

**I think I'm gonna write the first few chapters completely. I hate how I wrote them.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or any characters I didn't make up.**

* * *

"You got everything you need?" Ally asked through the phone as she got into her car. "Yes! For the millionth time, yes! Stop worrying, Alls," Austin laughed.

She shrugged, "It's not my fault you have the memory of a goldfish. You tend to forget a lot."

She heard him playfully gasp, "I forget a lot?! I'm a singer and an actor, remembering is practically my job! It's you who worries too much."

She giggled, "Alright, I need to go. See you there."

The entire group and both of their parents were all meeting up at the private beach house the Moons owned. They considered it their summer vacation. Austin, of course, wasn't too keen on having his dad come along, but Ally and Cassidy persuaded him for the sake of his mother.

Ally parked in the driveway of the address Austin sent her and took her suitcase to the front door. She noticed that their parents were already there.

She walked quietly into the house and heard her parents talking to Austin's parents. She stopped abruptly when she noticed it was getting heated.

"I'm sorry, Mimi, but I absolutely disagree with you. How can you be okay with teenage pregnancy? They're kids raising kids!" Penny exclaimed.

"I'm not okay with it, but if my daughter came to me when she was a teenager and said she was pregnant, I would not kick her out like many families do!" Mimi defended herself.

"My daughter would never get herself into such trouble! Apparently your daughter would," Ally heard her dad say.

"Are saying that my daughter isn't well raised? Yours would never be half as well-mannered as ours!" Mike fought back.

"At least my daughter isn't the one who surrounded herself with alcohol and started throwing punches left and right and getting into trouble at every corner!" Penny argued.

Before they could argue any further, Ally pushed herself to the living room and everyone stared at her in silence.  
She raised her eyebrows and smiled, "Everything okay?" Mimi stuttered, "Y-yes, honey, everything's perfect!" The rest smiled and nodded along with her.

Mimi walked over to Ally, "Come on, let's show you to your room." Ally followed her upstairs with her suitcase. "Have you talked to Austin about his father being here?" Mimi asked as Ally set her suitcase down.

"Yeah, he promised me he'll try to be nice to him," she informed. Mimi nodded, "Thank you, dear, for talking to him. I know getting involved in this mess isn't your idea of fun." Ally smiled, "It's okay, Mimi, I want Austin to be closer to his dad as well." She smiled, "Well, I'll leave you to unpack. Austin should be here soon."

Ally got into unpacking to busy herself from the bickering adults downstairs. When she was done, a presence made itself known from the doorway, "Wow, you're a heavy packer."

She smiled and turned to face him, "Took you long enough." He walked over to her and wrapped his arms around her waist, "Sorry. I was being chased by paparazzi and had to lose them before I headed here. I can't have them know this address too."

He leaned down to capture her lips in a sweet kiss. "Apology accepted," she giggled as they parted. He winked at her as he turned to get his suitcase.

She fiddled with her fingers before speaking, "Hey, I want to talk to you about something." He nodded her to continue as he unpacked. "When I got here, only our parents had arrived and they were… arguing. I don't think they're done with it."

She sat on the edge of the bed and watched him as he furrowed his eyebrows at her from his crouched down position next to his suitcase.

"What were they fighting about?" he asked. "They were discussing teenage pregnancy for some reason then it evolved to arguing which daughter was better and then my mom said that you were the bad one because you surrounded yourself with alcohol and got into trouble every day then I walked in," she informed him.

Ally noticed Austin looked down in hurt before adding, "They don't know your side of the story, Austin, they know about as much as the media knows. Don't let this bug you." He nodded as he stood up.

"Did they say something when you walked in?" he asked. She shook her head, "No, but I felt the tension. Austin, what if they fight again while we're here?"

He walked over to her. "We won't let them. We just have to keep the conversation neutral around them," he sat down next to her and put his arm around her shoulders.

"Which reminds me," she piped up, "how are you gonna behave around your father?" She looked up at him expectedly and he sighed, "I'll try to be nice." She stood up and smiled, "I'll take what I get. Come on, let's go say hi to everyone."

* * *

"It's on in 10 minutes!" Cassidy announced as everyone sat in the living room. "Which song is it again?" Ryder asked. Austin turned to face his girlfriend and exclaimed, "Now you know who's the one with the memory of a goldfish here!"

Everyone burst into laughter as Ryder rolled his eyes. "You're telling me! I had to remind him 10 times that we were staying here! It's a wonder he doesn't forget lyrics on stage," Kira agreed.

Dez piped up, "It's not him that forgets the lyrics, it's Austin. We have to remind him onstage. Elliot usually gives him the wrong lyrics to laugh at him. It's a hilarious scene."

Elliot smirked, "Someone's gotta teach this kid to do his homework." Austin rolled his eyes, "If you guys have to memorize scripts as much as I do, you wouldn't be making fun of-" "Everybody hush! It's on!" Trish exclaimed.

Everyone focused on TV where Austin and Ally were on. "Oh, I know these two!" Dez jokingly announced.

" _Hey, everyone, we just wanted to thank you-" Ally was interrupted by Austin, "for tuning in for the premiere of our newest music video-"Ally cut him, "of 'Secret Love Song,' And now-" Austin continued, "without further ado, our brand new music video."_

" _I was about to say that," Ally complained. "Well, I did instead. Got a problem?" Austin smirked. And they started bickering playfully until the director came in between them, "Kids, kids, please, not in front of everyone." Austin asked, "Kids?" Ally said, "You're 3 years older than us!" The director smiled to the camera, "See what I had to deal with?"_

 _Austin broke his character, "For real though, thank you, everyone, for supporting us." Ally broke hers as well, "Yeah, you're the only reason we do this and we really appreciate your support." The director added, "And now, for real this time, the premiere of." The three of them spoke together, "Secret Love Song!"_

 **The video began with Ally with her back to the camera wearing a simple beige dress**

 **Ally:**

 _When you hold me in the street  
And you kiss me on the dance floor _**The camera spun around her showing her face** _  
I wish that it could be like that  
Why can't it be like that?  
'Cause I'm yours_

We keep behind closed doors

 **She started walking around the vacant room** _  
Every time I see you, I die a little more  
Stolen moments that we steal as the curtain falls  
It'll never be enough_

It's obvious you're meant for me

 **The scene shifted to a similar room with a** _ **Beauty and The Beast**_ **rose in the center on a small table** _  
Every piece of you, it just fits perfectly  
Every second, every thought, I'm in so deep  
But I'll never show it on my face _**A petal dropped from the rose**

But we know this

 **The scene shifted back to Ally sitting against the wall** _  
We got a love that is homeless_

Why can't you hold me in the street?  
Why can't I kiss you on the dance floor?  
I wish that it could be like that  
Why can't we be like that?  
'Cause I'm yours

 **The scene slid through the wall Ally leaned on to show Austin in a similar sitting position** _  
_ **Austin:**

 _When you're with him, do you call his name  
Like you do when you're with me? Does it feel the same?  
Would you leave if I was ready to settle down  
Or would you play it safe and stay?_

Girl, you know this.  
We got a love that is hopeless

 **Both: The scene kept shifting from Austin to Ally and the rose** _  
Why can't you hold me in the street?  
Why can't I kiss you on the dance floor?  
I wish that it could be like that  
Why can't we be like that?  
'Cause I'm yours  
_ **Austin: The scene shifted to Austin standing facing the wall with his hands leaning on it**

 _And nobody knows I'm in love with someone's baby  
_ **Ally: The scene slid between the wall showing Ally in the same position**

 _I don't wanna hide us away_

 **Austin:** _  
Tell the world about the love we're making_

 **Ally:** _  
I'm living for that day_

 **Both:** _  
Someday  
_ **Austin: The scene showed him leaning his back on the wall** _  
Why can't I hold you in the street?  
Why can't I kiss you on the dance floor?_

 **Ally: The scene showed her standing in the same position** _  
I wish that we could be like that  
Why can't we be like that?  
'Cause I'm yours, I'm yours  
_ **Both: The scene shifted between each other and the rose with its final petal dropping** _  
Oh, why can't you hold me in the street?  
Why can't I kiss you on the dance floor?  
I wish that it could be like that  
Why can't it be like that?  
'Cause I'm yours  
_ **The scene showed them both facing each other with the wall between them** _  
Why can't I say that I'm in love?  
I wanna shout it from the rooftop  
I wish that it could be like that  
Why can't we be like that?  
'Cause I'm yours  
_ **The wall was gone in the next scene leaving them both looking into each other's eyes** _  
Why can't we be like that?  
Wish we could be like that _**The final scene showed the rose back together with its petals with a gold light surrounding it**

Austin and Ally held their breath to hear the others' opinion. "That was amazing!" Ally's mom exclaimed with wide eyes. The rest all voiced their opinions. Ally smiled, "I'm so glad you all liked it!" Trish laughed, "What an awesome director! He had two completely different ideas shot in two days!"

Cassidy nodded, "This is pretty different from your other one." Austin said, "We now have 2 music videos, one emotional and another sexy. I say our mission is accomplished." Ally nodded, "We make a pretty good team."


	27. Barbecue On The Beach

**Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or any characters I didn't make up.**

* * *

"Ohhh, remember this one?" Ryder asked as he started playing his guitar. Austin, Dez, and Elliot immediately recognized the song he was playing and joined in with Austin on his own guitar and Dez drumming on his seat.

" _You got holes in your jeans, and few in your heart, you don't know what it means to me, to watch you fall apart, 'cause you're broken and bruised, but I can hold you through, I'll take you in my arms tonight, just me and you_ **(1)** _,"_ Austin sang as they played their old song.

"What song is that?" Kira asked after they stopped playing.

"Soldier. They wrote it as part of the You Are Not Alone movement in 2012. They had to rewrite it several times because their label didn't like any of the versions. This was version number 7. During the writing process, they consumed about 3 energy drinks every night to pull an all-nighter to finish it in time. It was their third #1 single and stayed on top of the charts for 33 weeks straight, earning them an award for Best Single of The Year," Ally informed from her seat next to her boyfriend.

Everyone stared silently at her. "What?" she asked cluelessly.

"Well, that's not creepy at all," Dez sarcastically commented. "How do you know all that?" Elliot asked her. She shrugged, "You guys mentioned it in several interviews."

"You watched our interviews?" Austin smiled at her. She leaned her head on his shoulder and nodded, "I watch all of your interviews, the band or just you." Cassidy laughed, "How are you gonna beat that, Austin?"

He was about to reply before they were called by Ally's dad to come inside for dinner. They packed up their guitars and headed inside.

The girls went into the kitchen to help the moms as the guys waited in the living room with the dads. Austin took Ally to the side and hugged her tightly. "What happened?" she giggled as they broke their hug. He shrugged, "To thank you for being so supportive." She smiled, "It's okay. I just watched one one day and couldn't stop. Kind of pays you back for listening to all of my songs and supporting me." He leaned down and kissed her deeply.

A flash went off causing them in pulling away. "Thanks for the privacy, Mom," Austin smiled. "You'll thank me on your wedding!" she exclaimed. The couple looked at each other and laughed awkwardly before Ally said, "We'll see about that."

"What were you kids doing out there all day?" Mimi asked as they all took their seats. "Playing songs on our guitars and sang, I guess," Elliot replied. "We should start playing our old songs at our shows, it would make the fans happy," Ryder suggested to his bandmates. The rest of the band agreed with Ryder before Dez said, "Notice how Mimi called us kids when we're all responsible adults who have jobs and two of us are getting married." Mimi rolled her eyes, "You could be 80 and you'd still be kids to me." Penny commented, "You could be _90_ and you'd still be kids to me," making sure to emphasize the number to annoy Mimi.

Mike narrowed his eyes, "Oh, real mature." Lester exclaimed, "Are you saying my wife isn't mature?!" Austin awkwardly said, "Okay, let's just eat now." The parents fell into silence and busied themselves with their meals.

* * *

"Austin, stay at the barbeque with our dads," Ally ordered as she brushed her hair in front of the mirror in their room. "Oh, come on!" Austin complained, "Don't get me wrong, I like your dad, but I _really_ don't want to spend another minute around mine."

She turned to face him and crossed her arms sternly, "Would you rather them fighting again and ruining this day?" He thought for a moment before nodding, "Yes, especially if it causes my dad to leave. Actually, I'll go make them fight right now and get this over with."

"Austin!" she stopped him from leaving the room, "You promised me, Cass, and your mom you'd be nice to him." He shook his head, "I promised I'd try." She sighed, "Would you rather stay with the moms while I stay with the dads?" He shook his head, "No, my mom would make me go stay with my dad anyways. But, Ally, I don't want to be with him all day!"

Ally got closer to Austin and sternly spoke, "Listen to me, Moon, you will stay with the dads today and stop anybody from fighting with anybody like I will stay with our moms to stop them from arguing. Got that?"

He nodded in fear before saying, "Dinner last night wasn't exactly an argument." She sighed, "When we went into the kitchen last night, the moms were fighting. And Elliot told me the dads were also fighting." He rolled his eyes, "The things I do for you." She smiled, "Like hang out with your father?" He nodded, "When you know I can't stand him."

She giggled and wrapped her arms around his waist, "I love you." He wrapped his arms around her too, "I love you too." They leaned in and shared a sweet kiss.

Ally hated the position she was in but loved the scene around her. A big table was set up to fit all of them, but the chairs have been moved all over the big garden as everyone split into groups. Some distance away was the barbeque and the dads with Austin in between them. Dez and Ryder were sitting under a tree rehearsing a song. Elliot was with Cassidy near the ocean. Kira and Trish were sitting at the table talking.

Meanwhile Ally was, unfortunately, seated between the moms helping them prepare the meat. She knew Austin wasn't having the time of his life by the look on his face. The reasons their parents argued for were pretty silly for her. She thought they'd at least behave like adults, but no, they weren't.

Austin didn't defend his father a single time when arguments broke out. He always leaned towards Lester, but he never told them that, he just made them stop talking and do their work. And when Lester went to get more meat from the mothers, he wanted to leave him alone, except that he couldn't because he was assigned a job at the barbeque as well.

"Look at us, father and son grilling together. This is an opportunity for us to get closer," Mike smiled at his son. Austin glanced at him from the corners of his eyes, "If you think arguing with my girlfriend's dad is helping, you're wrong. I'm only here to stop you two from fighting and ruining the day."

Lester came back a few minutes later and Austin braced himself for the next witty comment he was about to make to his father, but, thankfully, Ryder walked up to him. "Austin, you need to go run the song over with Dez. We're having some problems with it," he said. Austin nodded, "Take my spot."

Ally glanced at the barbeque to see Mike and Lester laughing with Ryder but growling at each other each time they came face to face. She scanned the garden for her boyfriend to find him sitting with Dez singing. Trish walked up to her, "I wonder what he's singing. Wanna eavesdrop?"

Ally looked at the moms trying to decide if leaving them alone was a good choice or not before getting up and leaving with her best friend. She didn't want to waste the whole day babysitting, she wanted to have fun.

She and Trish stood behind the tree Austin leaned on and listened in on their discussions and his singing. They were discussing the second verse because they didn't think it fit the music. She smiled as a verse she wrote a while ago came to her mind and found out it matched the background music they were playing.

" _So hot that I couldn't take it, want to wake up and see your face, and remember how good it was being here last night, still high with a little feeling, I see the smile as it starts to creep in, it was there, I saw it in your eyes,"_ she sang to the music as she walked up to them.

" _I was stumbling, looking in the dark, with an empty heart, but you say you feel the same, could we ever be enough, baby we could be enough,"_ Austin continued as he stood up.

Together, they sang the chorus, " _And it's alright, calling out for somebody to hold tonight, when you're lost, I'll find the way, I'll be your light, you'll never feel like you're alone_ , _I'll make this feel like home."_

They were aware of the moms taking pictures of them dancing and singing together, but they didn't care, they just enjoyed the moment.

Their moment ended when applause erupted around them. The guys surrounded Ally. "You found the verse we've been looking for for weeks!" Elliot exclaimed with wild eyes. "Yeah, Ally, you should be in the song with us!" Austin smiled. "The song would sound amazing with your voice in it," Dez agreed.

Ryder nodded, "The world would love it." Ally shook her head and smiled, "No, you guys can have the verse. Maybe in the future."

The guys booed her as she rolled her eyes, "I swear I have never been booed in my life until I met you." Dez shrugged, "Well, you make a lot of choices we don't like."

After lunch, Dez and Ryder brought out the speakers and played some songs in a medium volume while everyone had a conversation in pairs.

Austin walked behind Ally who was talking to his mom and wrapped his arms around her from behind. "Well, hello there," he whispered in her ear. She giggled as Mimi smiled, "You two are so cute. When are you planning on going public?"

Ally was about to reply but Austin beat her to it, "We're not really sure yet." Ally frowned thinking she might have misheard him because of the songs playing. She broke free from his grasp and turned to face him, "What?"

He shrugged, "I don't think it's the right time to announce our relationship right now." Ally asked, "But I thought we agreed to go public at your album release party." He sighed, "I don't think we're ready. I'd rather we stay a secret for a bit longer."

"Oh. It's not like you're embarrassed or anything, right?" she crossed her arms angrily. They knew they attracted a crowd around them. He quickly said, "No! No! Alls, I'm not embarrassed. I would never be embarrassed of you."

"Then I don't get it. Why wouldn't you want us to be able to go to restaurants, go on walks together, do anything normal couples would do? Do you really like these sneaky dates that much?" Ally spat.

Nobody tried to stop them from fighting, they just watched. Ally was thankful for that, Austin wasn't.

"Ally, I would love to be able to do normal couple things, but we're not normal and you know that," he defended. She nodded, "That's the excuse you're going with. Okay then," she walked past him to the house, "guess I'll never be as important to you as your fans."

* * *

 **(1)Soldier- Before You Exit**


	28. Who's More Important To You?

**Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or any characters I didn't make up.**

* * *

 _"Ally, I would love to be able to do normal couple things, but we're not normal and you know that," he defended. She nodded, "That's the excuse you're going with. Okay then," she walked past him to the house, "guess I'll never be as important to you as your fans."_

Several hours later…

No matter how much he tried to talk to his angry girlfriend she still ignored him. He understood why she's mad, but he still believed his reasoning was the right one. His mom tried to talk to him, but he said he didn't want to talk about it. His sister advised him to leave her alone to cool off a bit.

She wouldn't even look at him as he stared at her from across the garden and ignored the guys' conversation. She continued her conversation with the girls as if nothing had happened between them.

"Austin? Austin?" Ryder tried to get his attention before exclaiming, "Dude!" Austin snapped out of his trance and turned to look at his best friends, "Huh?" Dez shook his head sympathetically, "You've been staring at her for the past 10 minutes."

Elliot interjected, "Not only her," he nodded his head towards Austin's parents who were cuddling on a hammock, "them too." Austin dropped his head, "I can't help it. Ally's mad at me, and my mom's cuddling with him. Things can't get worse."

"First, your mom can cuddle with her fiancé, that's not a crime. You're just bugged by it because you don't like him," Ryder stated, "Second, are you embarrassed of Ally?"

Austin's head shot up and he exclaimed loudly, "Hell no!" Everyone looked at him because of his loud response. He caught Ally's eyes as the rest resumed their conversations after seeing that nothing was going on. She shook her head at him and looked away.

He sighed dejectedly, "I can never be embarrassed of her. She's amazing. I want the world to know she's mine. She helped me become the best I can be. She's down to earth and doesn't let the fame get to her. She treats me like I'm a normal guy when no one else does. I love her. She's my everything. I can't lose her."

Elliot asked, "Then why don't you want to go public?" Austin rubbed the back of his neck, "I don't know. Maybe I'm scared of the fans' reaction. If they don't take it well, they could hurt her. They did that to my ex." Dez stated, "Your ex was horrible. They had the right to. This time's different. Ally's loved by everyone."

Ryder softly said, "If you really love her, you wouldn't care what anybody else thinks." Austin sighed and got up, "I need a moment."

He walked into the house where he knew nobody was in and headed to the kitchen. He got a water bottle out of the fridge and set it on the counter between his clenched fists.

He thought over what the guys told him. He knew that if he were in Ally's shoes, he would feel the same way. He cursed himself at how stupid he was. Of course Ally would be upset, she now thinks he doesn't care about her.

His thoughts were interrupted when someone walked in. He kept his back to them to let them know he wasn't interested in talking. He heard the fridge door opening and closing.

"Uh, Austin?" he recognized the voice to be his father's. He kept his back to him but mumbled a small, "Yeah?" Mike gently said, "I know you don't want to talk about it, but I need to tell you this."

Austin's lack of response encouraged him to continue, "These fans are there until they get bored of you and move on. That girl right there could be the rest of your life. Who's more important to you?"

He waited until his father left the room to turn around and stare at his retreating figure. What he told him repeated in his mind several times. He didn't expect his father out of everyone else to be the one telling him that.

He didn't know if his father did it for his happiness or to just end the tension and awkwardness in the room. He didn't know if Mike Moon genuinely cared about his family. This just confused him even more.

Austin didn't know whether or not he could trust him. He felt like he could, but something in his mind warned him. If he lets his father in and then he leaves again, Austin didn't know if he could take it. Flashbacks of the day he walked out on them burst in Austin's mind.

He remembered his mom sobbing in her room and him trying to get in before she hurts herself. He remembered the house that was once bright and smiley turned dull and depressed. He remembered Cassidy picking up used tissues from the floor while crying her eyes out. He remembered how quickly the fridge emptied, how the bills stacked up, how scarce money became.

He shook his head to clear his mind. They're older now, they have jobs. If his father decided to leave them again, it won't be as bad. They could go back to their normal lives before he came back. But his mom's heart would be broken. His sister would break down. He had to be the strong one between them. And to do that, he had to stay away.

He heard someone enter the house and go to the living room. He took a peek at the person to find Ally texting in the middle of the room. He prepared himself to go talk to her. This was either gonna make them or break them.

" _Who's more important to you?"_ the questioned echoed in his mind.

"Her," he whispered to himself before walking to the living room with a mission to accomplish.

She put her phone in her pocket the moment he walked in. She watched him confidently head towards her and take her hands in his.

She opened her mouth to speak but he stopped her, "Don't say anything. Hear me out first."

He watched her slowly nod before saying, "I'm not humiliated by you. I could never be. In fact, you should be embarrassed of me with how I acted today. I didn't want my fans to take it in a bad way then try to hurt you in some way. But after talking about it, I realized that I shouldn't care what they think. I love you too much to worry about what they say. Then my father told me something that really made me rethink my priorities. Ally, you're more important to me than anyone else. You'll always be. I'll never choose my career over you."

She quietly said, "You actually listened to your father?" He rolled his eyes and sarcastically said, "Out of all of that, that's the only thing you hear." Ally giggled before wrapping her arms around his neck, "I'm sorry for the way I acted too, but you really bothered me when you didn't want people to know about us."

He nodded, "I know, and you have every right to. So, are we okay?" She smiled and nodded, "You're more important to me than my career too. I love you." He pulled her to a deep kiss. They pulled away when a flash went off.

"Again?" Austin smiled at his mom who was holding a camera. Mimi defended herself, "You'll thank me for taking all of these pictures one day." Ally giggled, "I'm sure we will."

After Mimi walked out Ally turned to him, "By the way, you didn't have to tell me all of that. I already knew everything you were thinking."

He furrowed his brows, "How?" She smiled, "Dez recorded you telling them about how you're not embarrassed of me and how you couldn't lose me. I forgave you the moment he showed me that."

He nodded, "Of course he'd do that. How did I not see that coming?"

Ally's phone beeped signaling a received text. "Who are you texting?" he asked. She replied to the text before saying, "Scott."

Austin's eyes widened as he exclaimed, "And you're doing nothing?!" She turned her phone off, "I just want to see what he wants to finally leave me alone." He asked, "What did he say?" She bit her lip, "He wants to talk to me." He was cut off by Ally before he could say anything, "Alone."

He laughed, "But you're not gonna do it, are you?" She looked down, "Actually…"


	29. Two In A Million

**Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or any characters I didn't make up.**

* * *

"Austin, I want to end things completely with him. I know he hasn't been around for a while, but he's threatening me if I don't agree to meet up with him. He'll do something terrible," Ally explained.

Austin scoffed, "And you believe him?! He could be saying that just to scare you into talking to him!"

She sighed, "Either way, something's gonna happen."

Austin couldn't believe what she was saying. That guy hurt her for months and stalked her for more. She can't just go talk to him and hope all ends well. Neither of them even trusted him enough.

"What if he tries to do something when you're with him?"

"He's letting me decide the place we meet up at. I'll choose somewhere public," she said confident of her plan.

"But-"

"Austin," Ally stated sternly, "No matter what you say I'm going. I can take care of myself. Yes, I'm scared to death of him, but if I don't do anything soon, I'll stay scared to death of him. I don't want to live in fear anymore."

He bit his bottom lip before nodding, "Fine. But if anything, and I mean _anything_ , happens, you immediately call me. Okay?"

She smiled and wrapped her arms around his neck, "Okay. Now come on, I bet they missed out there."

He kissed her deeply before saying, "I'm sorry again for what happened today." Ally giggled, "It's fine. Let's just move on from that."

They made their way back to the backyard, but this time, as a happy couple. The guys and girls cheered as the couple walked up to them. "Well, well, well, look who's back in Happy Town. I hope no expensive vases were thrown at his head," Elliot smirked.

Austin rolled her eyes and they took a seat on the floor with the rest of the group, "Shut up or you're gonna get an expensive vase thrown at your head. Ally isn't the violent-when-angry type, right Ally?"

She shrugged and looked ahead of her innocently. "Right, Ally?" Austin repeated nervously. She looked at him and smiled sweetly, "Of course I am. Just don't get me that mad and I'll let you keep your limbs."

Everyone burst laughing at Austin's defeated expression until Ally calmed down and said, "But I still love you." He smiled, "I love you too." Everyone fake-gagged at the sight of the two kissing, so the two continued to vex their friends.

Ally pulled away and rested her forehead against his, "Don't worry. I'm rarely that mad when I'm with you."

Penny walked up to the group and announced, "I need a volunteer." Ryder exclaimed while disgustedly watching the couple in front him flirt, "I'll do it!"

Penny put her hands on her hips, "You didn't even hear what I need." He looked up at her, "Anything to escape from Romeo and Juliet here."

Austin and Ally glared at him before turning back to Penny. "What do you need, Mom?" Ally asked.

"We're making lasagna for dinner and we're missing something Mimi told me is like magic in a bottle, but I forgot its name. She said Austin got it for her from Italy."

"So you want one of us to go to Italy to get this magic in a bottle," Dez blankly stated.

Penny rolled her eyes, "No, you idiot! I want someone to go to this Italian supermarket to see if they have it there."

Austin stood up, "I'll go get it. I know what it looks like."

He leaned down and kissed his girlfriend's head before walking away.

"Why don't you go with your father?" Mimi asked her son as he put grabbed his keys at the front door. Austin winced, "I would, but I already left."

Quickly, he kissed his mom's cheek before opening the door and yelling, "Bye," over his shoulder and leaving without giving her time to process what happened.

While everyone waited for dinner, the guys set up a microphone and speakers for anyone who wanted to sing. The girls set the chairs a few feet in front of the microphone stand for the 'audience.'

Ally didn't want to sing, but she wanted everyone else to. She wondered how good they all sounded. She just sat in her chair clapping and cheering and laughing.

* * *

Austin came out of the supermarket with his mission accomplished. He held the bag with the groceries he was supposed to get as he made his way to his car.

"Well, well, well, would you look at who we have here?" Austin heard from behind him.

He quickened his pace as the person behind him walked faster. Austin decided to ignore him to not start a huge fight out in public.

"You having fun with that little bitch?"

Austin held the bag tighter in his fist as he held back from saying anything.

"I'm just telling you, she'll leave you as soon as she gets bored of you."

Austin clenched his jaw in response to that comment.

"And did she tell you about our little meet up later this month? Just know that she'll be begging for me to have her back after that."

' _How far did I park that fucking car?'_ Austin asked himself.

"Know why? Because she's a slut and a whore. Never settles for just anyone. Wants the best of the best. You're just a phase she'll pass. She's-"

' _That's it!"_ Austin exclaimed in his mind as he turned around and punched him. He fell to the ground with a bleeding nose.

Austin was about to do more but he caught a flash in the corners of his eyes. _'Paparazzi,'_ he thought.

Austin quickly turned around and got into his car. As he started the engine, he saw Scott finally get up while wiping some blood with his sleeve.

Scott raised his middle finger to flip him off. Austin did the same as he pulled out of the parking lot. Austin turned up the radio to calm himself down and not worry anybody. By the time he got back to the house, he was upbeat and smiling again. He didn't want to ruin the day by having to tell Ally what happened. He'll just wait for another day to tell her.

* * *

Ally laughed as she watched the hilarious show Dez and Elliot put on as they sang a children's song. The two bowed to the audience proudly.

"Austin Moon and Ally Dawson, you're up next," Dez announced.

Ally's eyes widened, "What?! I didn't say I want to sing!" Cassidy, who was sitting in front of Ally, turned to face her, "But we want to hear this duet you and Austin have never sung in public before."

"Austin isn't even here yet," Ally argued. "You can sing a duet in a solo version, you know," Kira informed. "It wouldn't sound the same," she defended. Ally's dad spoke, "You can give me every excuse you have in mind, but you're still singing."

Trish and Mimi started chanting 'Ally' resulting in everyone joining in. Ally groaned as she got up from her seat and when to stand in front of everyone.

"Can at least know what song I'm singing?" Ally asked. Ryder replied, "Nope. You'll know it when you hear it."

The music started and Ally smiled at their choice. Taking the mic out of the stand she started singing.

 **Ally:**

 _Planets align_

 _Suddenly, I'm alive_

 **Austin came out of the house with a microphone of his own and started singing:** _  
Eyes full of stars_ **(He smiled at Ally)**

 _Guide me to where you are  
_ **Both:**

 _Pinch me if I'm asleep_ **(They faced each other staring into each other's eyes)**

 _Cause this feels like it's a dream_

We're like two in a million  
Can't even begin to find  
Where I found you  
What are the chances  
And there'll be this magic when we touch

 **Ally:** _  
We've got something special  
On another level  
_ **Both:** _  
Like it's just me and you and the room  
Because something's so brilliant  
Is meant for just two in a million  
_ **Austin: (They faced the crowd and walked a bit farther from each other)** _  
Sparks start to fly_

 _It's in the air tonight_

 **Ally:** _  
Light in the dark_ **(Ally smiled at him from the other side)**

 _Holding me in your arms  
_ **Both:** _  
Pinch me if I'm asleep_

 _Cause this feels like it's a dream_

We're like two in a million

 **(They faced each other once again)** _  
Can't even begin to find  
Where I found you  
What are the chances _**(They walked closer to each other)** _  
That there'd be this magic when we touch  
_ **Ally:**

 _We've got something special  
On another level  
_ **Both:** _  
Like it's just me and you and the room  
Because something's so brilliant  
It's meant for just two in a million _**(They turned towards the crowd)** _  
Two in a million  
_ **Ally:** _  
We're like two in a million  
Can't even begin to find_

 **Both:** _  
Where I found you  
What are the chances  
And there'll be this magic when we touch_

 **Ally: (She sang to him from where she stood a few feet in front of him)** _  
We've got something special_

 **Austin:**

 _(We've got something)_

 **Ally:** _  
On another level_

 **Austin:**

 _(No, it's not nothing)  
_ **Ally:** _  
Like it's just me and you and the room_

 **Both:** **(They got closer and closer to each other until they were only several inches apart)**

 _Yeah (Yeah)  
Because something's so brilliant  
Is meant for just two in a million  
Because something's so brilliant  
Is meant for just two in a million  
Two in a million_

She smiled at him, "You have the perfect timing." He leaned down and kissed her deeply. "Good. Because that was amazing," he grinned.

"At least now we know why they've never performed it before," Trish commented in the background. Austin and Ally looked at them confusedly.

"I agree," Elliot said, "make them sing one of those songs and suddenly it feels like we're intruding in on a very private conversation."

"I almost got up because I thought they wanted to be alone," Kira said.

"Alright, we get it," Ally laughed. "I don't believe you all thought of like that. Moms, you were filming us," Austin turned towards the parents.

"And Dads, you were crying," Ally giggled. Mike and Lester wiped their eyes quickly. "You can't blame us," Mike argued.

"Just wait until your kids have moments like these then you'll understand," Penny said. Austin and Ally awkwardly laughed before Austin changed the subject, "I got everything you needed. It's in the kitchen."

The moms got up and went to the house while the dads headed to clean the garage. The rest continued the singing session until everybody had sung with everybody.

* * *

Everyone hungrily attacked their plates the moment they sat down. After they started to get a little full, conversations started.

"I have been wanting to ask you something," Mimi said to her son. "What?" Austin furrowed his brows.

"Why do you call her Princess? I know you, so it must not be for a romantic reason," she asked.

Ally giggled at the question because she knew the answer. "When I first met her, she was so snobby and selfish-" Austin started before Ally cut him off.

"I was snobby?! You were an asshole!" Ally defended herself. His jaw dropped, "You didn't even know I could sing! That speaks snobby all over it."

"At least I was nice enough to say good morning every day when we had our writing sessions. You grumble at me instead," she fired back.

"Do you know how annoying it was to see this block of sunshine and rainbows smile at you while you were still half asleep?!" he exclaimed.

"I'm guessing you guys didn't like each other when you first met," Kira assumed.

"Oh, they hated each other," Dez laughed, "should I even begin with how they were the night I proposed to Trish?"

"If it wasn't for us, they would have probably attacked each other with the steak knives," Trish sarcastically said.

Lester laughed, "You would've never guessed that with the show they put on earlier."

Austin wrapped his arm around her shoulder and spoke confidently, "Say what you want, but I think it's safe to say we found a way to tolerate each other." Ally kissed his cheek to back his comment up.

They saw a flash and they knew one of their moms took a photo of them. They smiled at each other as Ally said, "I think you turned out to be a bit bearable, Moon." He agreed, "You too, Mo-Dawson."

* * *

 **This got way longer than I intended. Unfortunately, this was the last chapter at the beach house. But that means some action will start happening;)**

 **Review!**


	30. Awards Night

**Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or any characters I didn't make up.**

* * *

" _Austin Moon was pictured getting a bit violent with a young man outside a supermarket last night," images of Austin punching him were showed. "If this was last year, we would've said that's typical Austin Moon behavior, but with the progress he's made these past months, we sure hope he isn't turning back to those bad times," the camera switched back to the host, "The young man he punched was identified to be Scott Smith, Ally Dawson's ex-boyfriend. A while ago, Ally came out to confirm that he was abusive to her throughout the last year of their relationship, and that's the reason she left him._

" _With that piece of information, it's hard to feel bad for the guy, he did get punched by Austin Moon and Austin is known to have a pretty mean right hook. While Austin Moon and Ally Dawson are close friends after releasing an album together earlier this year, it's unclear if Austin is aware of Ally's rough history with Scott._

" _The motive behind that punch is not confirmed yet, but fans have certainly not hesitated in expressing their own theories. Some agree that Austin and Ally are dating and he punched her abusive ex because he knows about their past and is furious at him for hurting his girlfriend. But we can't be sure of that since the two have repeatedly said that they are not dating despite being seen in the same hangout spots for the last several months._

" _Other fans say that Austin was just having a bad day and a comment Scott made got him so mad he punched him. Sounds little like dark Austin making his return to me. Well, that's all we know folks. Make sure to tweet me what you think happened. This is Jessica Williams signing out."_

The entire room turned to look at Austin who just walked in. "What?" he furrowed his eyebrows. "Oh, nothing. Just the news announcing that you punched my ex-boyfriend yesterday," Ally dryly stated as she stood up.

He sighed, "Ally, I was gonna tell you tomorrow, when we're all home. I didn't want to ruin our last day here."

"Why did you punch him?"

"He was saying some annoying things that made me lose it."

"Austin, I know Scott. I know he was trying to provoke you by talking about me badly to get you to break. But I need you to ignore him to make him stop. Not only is he gonna keep coming back, but it's bad for your reputation. Some people think you're going back to last year's actions. I don't want you to sacrifice your image," Ally tried to convince him.

"You think I'm gonna let him say whatever he wants to say about my girlfriend and not do anything just to save my image?" he argued.

They were standing in front of each other not bothering to move somewhere else to keep their friends and families from hearing.

"Yes!" Ally exclaimed desperately, "He is capable of doing anything he wants to do to you. He can kill you if he wants! If you've gotten hurt by him or worse, I-I…"

Austin softened at the vulnerable look on her face as she struggled to finish her sentence, "Okay. I won't fight him anymore. I'll be careful with him. As long as you're careful with him."

She smiled accomplishedly and hugged him. He knew by the look on her face, and everyone else's faces, that he fell for her act to get him to agree with her. They were gonna make fun of him for this, but if they were faced with her adorable puppy face, they'd do the same as him too.

* * *

 _A week later…_

"What do you think?" Ally stepped back to show Austin her outfit through her computer. "You look beautiful," he smiled. "Now your turn," she ordered. He stood up and backed away from his laptop to display his clothes for the night.

"Looking handsome, Mr. Moon," she approved. "Thanks. Are you nominated for an award?" he asked. She nodded, "Best Female Singer. And _to The Moon and Back_ is also nominated for Album of the Year."

He confusedly asked, "Album of The Year? Is that a new category?" She nodded, "They're giving it to what the world thinks is the best album released this year. Its award is even twice the size of the normal ones. It's a big deal. I don't think we'll win, as terrible as that sounds."

He smiled, "Me too. Ours can't compare with the other albums. I mean we're up against Beyoncé! But I hope you win your category. The band's up for Best Music Group, and I'm up for Best Movie Actor. Which reminds me, are you presenting an award?"

She shook her head, "But I heard you are. Which category?" He winked at her, "You'll have to wait and see." She said, "Don't forget the lyrics tonight. The guys warned me about you." He rolled his eyes, "That's optimistic."

She laughed, "Alright. My ride is here. I'll see at the carpet." He nodded, "See you at the carpet."

Ally stepped on the carpet looking in different directions according to the photographers' requests. She went through several interviews and took pictures with several artists she's worked with or is friends with. She couldn't really catch up with them on the carpet because it was really noisy, so they agreed to meet up inside.

"Ally Dawson! Ally Dawson! How do you feel about Austin Moon coming tonight?" one interviewer asked loudly. She smiled, "He's a great friend and I can't wait to perform with him tonight."

"What song are you singing?"

She winked, "Guess you'll have to wait and see."

The crowd went crazy when another artist arrived. Ally turned to look where everyone was looking and saw the guys and Austin standing to take a group shot.

She looked away to not make anyone suspicious and continued her way through the carpet.

"Would you look at who's here?" she heard Austin ask next to her. "Austin! It's great to see you!" she used the line she says to all of her coworkers. The flashes increased when the two shared a friendly hug.

They stood together for a few photos before Ally asked him quietly, "Want to make them go crazy?" He nodded before leaning in to place a kiss on her cheek.

They heard everyone cheering louder and were blinded by the flashes. He let go of her and walked away to his band to have a few interviews. Ally said hi to a singer she's worked with a long time ago and hugged him. That hug didn't receive as big a reaction as her hug with Austin did. He also kissed her cheek when they were parting ways.

Ally was seated far away ahead of Austin and the guys, unfortunately. But she was pleased that the celebrities next to her were all people she's actually talked to before.

The show went by until it was the band's category's turn. Ally held her breath to hear the winner. It felt like forever until the presenter announced the winner. She cheered loudly and clapped when 4 familiar guys received their award.

"Oh my God," Dez panted, "I haven't been this shocked since I found out spiders can fart." Ryder nodded, "Me too, but not because of the spider fart." Elliot came forward and thanked their label, manager, families, friends, and supporters. "You guys are incredible. Thank you so much for getting us here," Austin smiled.

Soon enough, Austin walked out on stage to present an award. Ally was surprised to find out that he was presenting her category.

"And the winner for Best Female Singer is…" Austin look at the card in his hands. He exclaimed with a huge smile, "Ally Dawson!"

Ally gasped and quickly stood hugging some of her friends. She didn't know how she made it to the stage without passing out. She felt dizzy with excitement.

She grabbed her award and hugged Austin. "I love you. I'm so proud of you," he whispered to her. She smiled at him as he walked off stage and delivered her acceptance speech.

"I can't believe this. I seriously didn't think I'd win with such amazing nominees in this category. I think I should start by thanking my family and friends, you guys always support me and I love you for that; my manager and label for giving me this opportunity; and my fans for getting me here. You guys are awesome and I wouldn't have done it without you. Remember, hard work is not a chore. You want something, you work for it. Nothing comes easy. No matter what people say, do not stop believing in yourself. You are awesome."

Unfortunately, Austin didn't win in his category, but that's alright, Ally was proud of him no matter what.

She met up with him backstage to prepare for their performance. They acted as friends because there were cameras back there. "Ready?" he smiled. She nodded before they separated to take their places.

The lights dimmed and spotlights hit them as they appeared, Ally on stage and Austin within the audience.

 **Both:**

 _Face to face and heart to heart_ **(1)** _  
We're so close yet so far apart  
I close my eyes I look away  
That's just because I'm not okay_

 **Ally:** _  
But I hold on,_ **they stayed in their places as they sang looking at each other**

 **Both:**

 _I stay strong  
Wondering if we still belong_

Will we ever say the words we're feeling

 **They began walking very slowly getting closer to each other as the crowd clapped to the beat** _  
Reach down underneath and tear down all the walls  
Will we ever have our happy ending?  
Or will we forever only be pretending? _**Ally stopped walking down the stage and turned to face the crowd** _  
Will we always, always, always be pretending_

 _How long do I fantasize_ **Austin made his way between the seats looking at her the whole time** _  
Make believe that it's still alive  
Imagine that I am good enough  
And we can choose the ones we love _**She caught his eyes and they stopped walking**

 **Austin:** _  
But I hold on,_

 **Both:**

 _I stay strong  
Wondering if we still belong, _**They faced each other but were standing across from each other with some distance between them as golden lights starting roaming the arena**

Will we ever say the words we're feeling  
Reach down underneath and tear down all the walls  
Will we ever have our happy ending?  
Or will we forever only be pretending?  
Will we always, always, always be

Keeping secrets safe  
Every move we make  
Seems like no one's letting go  
And it's such a shame  
Cause if you feel the same  
How am I supposed to know?

 **Ally sang her high note while closing her eyes tightly making the audience clap and cheer for her**

Will we ever say the words we're feeling

 **They continued to walk towards each other** _  
Reach down underneath and tear down all the walls  
Will we ever have our happy ending?  
Or will we forever only be pretending? _**They finally reached each other standing with only several inches between them** _  
Will we always, always, always be  
Will we always, always, always be  
Will we always, always, always be pretending?_

"Good thing you didn't forget the lyrics," Ally smiled up at him. He chuckled, "Well, you told me not to."

Austin and Ally looked away from each other when the entire audience gave them a standing ovation. They smiled as they heard the loud cheers and saw the big smiles around them, even some tears from some celebrities and fans.

"Give it up for Ally Dawson and Austin Moon for that amazing emotional performance!" the host exclaimed as she approached the couple, "Like seriously how are you two not dating? You're totes adorbs." They laughed at her comment.

Austin and Ally were about to go back to their seats but the host stopped them.

"These two just sang us a beautiful ballad from their hit album, _To The Moon and Back,_ and I am here to tell them that this album actually won Album of the Year tonight."

Ally's jaw dropped as she looked at Austin who was mirroring her expression. "Are you kidding?!" she excitedly asked. "Cuz if you are, it will be very hard to walk away now," Austin said.

"You two won. It's real. Your award's behind you," the host laughed.

They turned and saw a woman holding their prize. Austin held it with a shaking hand as he stuttered, "I-I can't actually believe this. Thank you s-so much!"

Ally wiped away her tears and said, "This is truly and honor. We are so grateful for you. You know, we almost didn't finish this album because we couldn't stand each other and now here we are, holding an award because it won Album of the Year."

"I actually thought you would cut my head off before we were even done with the first song," Austin joked. She giggled, "It's so nice to see our countless arguments and hard work finally pay off. And we have you to thank."

"Thank you so much everyone! We really appreciate it! You're the reason we do this every day!" Austin concluded before they walked back to their seats.

Ally hugged the people that congratulated her before taking her seat. Austin did the same before sharing a group hug with the guys when they all attacked him with their excitement for him.

* * *

 **(1) Pretending- Glee**

 **This chapter was just a normal one. The next ones are gonna be about Austin's parents' wedding, Austin going to shoot his movie, Ally hopefully solving everything with Scott, and more;)**

 **Review your thoughts!**


	31. A Weekend To Remember

**I'm thinking about switching to Wattpad. What do you think?**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or any characters I didn't make up.**

* * *

Cassidy, Ally, Kira, Trish, and Ally's mom-who was shockingly getting along with Mimi now- have planned a small bachelorette party for Mimi the weekend after the award show. Seeing as nobody wanted to have it in a bar, they settled on the beach house. The guys, minus Austin, rented a penthouse for Mike's bachelor party and dragged Austin to be with them. They invited Lester too, but he was away on a business trip.

The girls prepared a very strict agenda for their weekend here. The guys decided to let Mike choose, partly because they were lazy, and partly because they didn't know anything about Mike to plan something for him.

The girls all woke up at 9 when their synced up alarms played soft, relaxing music, had breakfast at 10, prepared for their day at 11, and were sunbathing by the ocean by 12. They had exactly 1 hour and 21 minutes to soak up the sun before clouds ruin their day and force them to go inside and watch a rom-com while eating tubs of ice cream that they know they shouldn't have to fit in their dresses.

Ryder and Dez stood at opposite ends of the hall containing their rooms and banged 2 pans each against each other while yelling "Fuck cancer!" to wake everyone up.

Austin, Elliot, and Mike came out of their bedrooms in rage and tore the pans from their hands. "'Fuck cancer?' Really?!" Elliot exclaimed while rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

"Hey, don't mock. That's a very serious disease," Dez warned. Mike sighed, "You make me regret coming here already."

"Now that you're awake, we'd like to tell you that breakfast is served," Ryder proudly announced. Austin handed the pan in his hand to Elliot and turned to go to his room, "You guys have fun, I'm going back to sleep. I'm not feeling good."

Dez stopped from going into his room by standing in front of him, "Na-a-ah, not falling for this lie. Whether you like it or not, you're coming today."

Austin glared at his best friend before going into the bathroom. He heard the guys cheering and high-fiving for their achievement of getting him to go out with them. He looked at the clock and sighed, it was only 10am, he still had a long day ahead of him.

* * *

"I have to say, these avocado masks are really soothing," a green-faced Mimi admitted as she sat down on a chair in her robe. The rest who looked just like her agreed.

"Now that we have our facials done, it's time for the deep talk," Kira announced. Everyone sat in a circle on the floor and put a bowl of chips in the center.

"How does it feel to be a bride again?" Trish excitedly asked. Mimi sighed dreamingly, "It feels as if it's my first time. The butterflies, the happiness, the love. But I think I'm more nervous this time."

"Is it because of Austin and Mike?" Penny sympathetically asked.

Cassidy nodded, "I know you worry, Mom, but Elliot just texted me saying that Austin actually agreed to go out with them. That hopefully means improvement."

"I know my son. He's not gonna talk to him until they all go home. I know he thinks he's protecting me, but Mike would never hurt me like that again. I sometimes think of cancelling this whole thing because of him," Austin's mom confessed.

Ally who was stuck in her own thoughts about the subject spoke, "Don't. No matter how badly he hates Mike, Austin would never take your happiness away. He's told me this a lot before."

* * *

Apparently, Mike has booked an ice ring for them to skate in for the day. He also said that he had a surprise waiting for Austin there.

"This is awesome!" Elliot exclaimed when they entered the empty room, "An entire ice ring just for us."

For several hours, they skated around playing games on the ice until Dez noticed something.

"Are those bikes?" Dez pointed at the two matching bicycles at the end on the room. Austin skated there and got on one of them not planning to push it further onto the ice, "Who would bring a bike to an ice ring?"

Mike smiled widely, "I brought them here! Austin, it's the surprise I told you about!"

Austin looked down at the bike, "A bike on ice?"

"Remember when you were younger and we used to race these around the ice trying to beat each other and your mother would yell in fear that we get hurt, but we never did?!"

Austin furrowed his eyebrows, "You mean when I was 8 and did anything older people did?"

"Come on! For old times' sake!" Mike exclaimed.

"Mike, I don't think this is a good idea. The wheels aren't adjusted to be on ice, I'm not wearing any protection, plus I can't get hurt, I have a show next week," Austin protested.

"We never got hurt back then," Mike reasoned.

Austin rolled his eyes, he was not playing along, "I'm not-" he was interrupted when Mike nudged the bike onto the ice.

"No! Mike! I said no!" he yelled.

Austin cried for help as he couldn't control the wheels and the bike slid everywhere. "HELP!" he shouted as he tried to keep himself and the bike from falling.

Nobody could do anything since the bike was sliding and tilting in all directions. They could only watch in horror as he and the bike tilted over and Austin's ankle being crushed by the bike and the weight of his body.

"Shit that hurts!" Austin exclaimed as the guys tried to get his foot out of the wheel's spokes. "Austin, I'm so sorry!" Mike apologized as Ryder wrapped his ankle in a scarf.

"No you're not!" he snapped, "I said no and you still pushed me."

He got up with Dez's help and leaned on him as he walked out of the ice ring, "It's like you wanted me to get hurt."

To make it up to him, Mike decided to make dinner, promising to make it delicious and make his secret recipe juice. They even stopped by a supermarket for Mike to get some things he'll need.

Austin was stuck to the couch with his foot propped up with packs of ice and a bitter attitude. The guys ignored his mood and joked and laughed amongst themselves. And when they would joke with him, he would growl at them.

He got to his seat in the kitchen with Elliot's help when dinner was served. He had to admit the table did look pretty good, like his father put a lot of effort into it.

"I hope you like it," Mike smiled, "it's my special dish." He poured them all a glass of the juice he prepared. Austin found it tasty, so he gulped through his first glass.

After he poured his second glass and was drinking it, he started to feel a persistent itch in his arm that wouldn't go away when he scratched it. He furrowed his eyebrows, "What's this juice?"

"Oh, it's banana and strawberry," Mike informed proudly, but turned confused when he saw the guys take Austin's glass away from him and Austin doing a spit take.

"Strawberries?!" Austin yelled in rage, "I'm allergic to strawberries!"

He immediately knew the reason he was getting itchy. He felt something rising in his throat and ran to the nearest bathroom. He kneeled in front the toilet and let the contents of his stomach out.

He leaned on the wall trying to slow down his breathing when Mike spoke, "I swear I didn't know you were allergic."

"Of course you don't remember," Austin snapped already feeling his throat swelling, "I've been allergic all my life."  
Ryder kneeled by his ankle, "Austin, it's swelling even more. You ran on it." Austin nodded feeling it throb with pain, "It hurts."

Elliot and Dez, after refusing Mike's help, helped him to his bed where his ankle was covered in an ice pack and he was given some pills to take.

Austin was left alone then when he started feeling dizzy. He sighed into the darkness. He tried to be friendly today, but two hours in and he knew that that wasn't happening. Everything Mike did seemed wrong or hurt him in a way. Even if it wasn't on purpose, he was still mad.

* * *

After following their schedule for only half a day, the girls decided it was more fun to do whatever they wanted whenever they wanted, they agreed that being spontaneous was part of the fun.

They all sat down in the living room waiting for their dinner to arrive. Trish sat up in her seat, "Uh-oh, trouble in paradise."

"What do you mean?" Cassidy asked. "Austin sprained his ankle and then had an allergic reaction," Trish read her texts from Dez to the rest to inform them what happened.

Ally quickly went to call her boyfriend when she heard everything. "Are you okay?" she asked once he picked up.

"Oh, I'm wonderful. I'm just stuck to my bed with itchy skin, an upset stomach, and my foot propped up with ice wondering how in the world I'm going to preform to fifty thousand people next week."

"So I guess you're not okay," she quietly said.

He sighed, "I'm sorry, Alls. I'm just really mad and in pain."

"I know you are, but he swears he didn't mean to."

He argued, "He could've at least tried to remember his son's life long allergy towards strawberries. One more mishap and I'm going home."

Ally giggled trying to lighten up the mood, "How come you've never told me you're allergic to strawberries?"

He chuckled trying to forget the anger in him, "It never came up. Now that you know I have to tell you I'm sorry if you have any fantasies of us having strawberries covered in chocolate on a date by the beach, I can't make it come true."

She playfully pouted, "There goes my goal in this relationship."

Ally was thankful to hear his laugh, knowing that she was able to distract him from his condition. They stayed on the phone all night joking and laughing, not caring about what the rest were doing without them.

* * *

Austin woke up and sighed happily. It the last day in this penthouse. Thankfully, he wasn't awakened by the banging of pans and chants, he woke up peacefully.

He expected to have a bad night sleeping with what happened the previous day, but after talking all night long with Ally about things they both found comforting, he felt better. She was able to make him forget about his ankle and allergic reaction.

The swelling in his throat had gone a bit down, his stomach felt better. He still had a runny nose and red spots all over his skin that he knew would take a few days to disappear.

Getting up, he hopped on his good foot to the bathroom they all shared. He frowned when he noticed the hotel shampoo has been used up. _How much shampoo do they use in one shower?_ He looked around and found one of the others' shampoo and decided to use it.

After his shower, he put on his outfit for the day and hopped back to his room. Glancing at himself quickly in the mirror, he hopped to the bed before going back to the mirror in panic.

Ryder, Elliot, Dez, and Mike all jolted from their beds to the location of the scream they heard. The went to Austin's bedroom to find him brushing through his hair in despair.

"My hair is green! My hair is green!" he exclaimed as he stared at himself in the mirror.

"Hey, at least you look like Christmas with your green hair and the red spots on your skin," Ryder encouragingly said.

Austin glared at him and leaned on the wall after his leg got tired of holding him up.

"Oh, I must have packed the wrong shampoo…" they heard Mike mumble.

Austin groaned, "Of course it's you. Something else bad happens on this trip and it's your fault. Why am I not surprised?"

"It was an accident. I didn't know you'd use it," Mike defended.

Austin hopped closer to him, "You make me sprain my ankle by pushing me on a bike onto ice. You forget that I am allergic to strawberries. You pack the wrong shampoo and put it in the bathroom. Why do you even have green dye shampoo? That speaks negligent and irresponsible all over it. God help my mom with you."

Austin's father was about to say something but Austin continued, "Will we have to write you notes to remember what she's like? To remember that she can't stand cologne? To remember that she likes to sleep in a cold room? To remember that she takes long baths once a week to relax?

"I'm against this wedding, but I'm doing it for Mom. I have no idea what she still sees in you. You left her with two young kids and no money! She had to humiliate herself to get some money in that house! You didn't see the look on her face when she sobbed every night in her room and I'd have to go in and put her in bed," Austin's eyes glittered with tears at the memory.

"You've been trying to get close to me ever since I moved here. But know this, I will never let you in because you abandoned your family-"

Mike exclaimed, "I was forced to leave you! You wouldn't have lived a good life if I stayed! If you would just hear me explain why I left, I promise you, you'd understand."

Austin shook his head, "No, I won't. Because nothing justifies leaving your family. Nothing makes it okay. So get this straight, Cass and Mom might have let you come back, but you will never be my father again."

And that's when he walked, or more accurately hopped, away from that bachelor party.

* * *

 **Austin was a bit too harsh to his father, in my opinion.**

 **Next chapter is the Moons' wedding!**

 **Review!**


	32. Preparations

**Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or any characters I didn't make up.**

* * *

 _Two weeks later…_

 _Day before the wedding…_

The girls were staying at the Dawson's countryside house where the ceremony and reception will be taking place. Ally was flying in tomorrow in time for their hair and makeup sessions. She had to go to New York 2 days before the wedding for a few radio interviews.

The guys were staying at Mike and Mimi's house, Austin and Cassidy's childhood house. Austin had rejected Mike's proposal of being his best man. Mike had to go to the next best thing which was asking Dez, who said yes.

The day before the wedding, for Austin, was a series of phone calls while the others enjoyed themselves. He had to make sure everything for the wedding was booked right. This wedding was coming out of Austin's wallet, so he wanted everything to be perfect for his mom.

After his 200th call from the florist to reconfirm the colors and number of the centerpieces, Elliot walked into the backyard to tell him lunch is ready.

"I'm not really hungry. I'll just finish my phone calls and eat later," Austin said answering the call he received from the caterer.

Elliot, seeing that Austin wasn't going to stop his work and come eat, just nodded and went inside.

After the whole incident at the bachelor party, Austin hated Mike with a new passion. He had to perform on crutches with green hair and spotty, itchy skin. He was now the inspiration of many memes.

He even almost didn't come to stay here for the pre-wedding preparation, but Ally and his mom talked him into it. Something about them not wanting him to stay alone in his house while everyone else had a good time, which he found ridiculous, it's not like he was enjoying himself right now.

"No, no, nothing should have strawberries. And no spicy food. The bride can't have spicy food," Austin said into the phone. His phone beeped making Austin lower it from his ear to see that it died on him.

He groaned and went inside to charge it. Figuring that he had at least an hour until he could use it again, he decided to take a break.

"Finally off that phone I see," Lester spoke once Austin came into view. He sighed as he plopped down on the couch, "I've never seen such careless employees. They literally do the opposite of what you tell them to do."

"You should let me deal with the bookings," Mike said. He scoffed, "So that I get another allergic reaction and Mom gets stomachache from the spicy food."

"Mimi can't have spicy food?" His father asked.

Austin rolled his eyes, "I rest my case."

He got up and made himself a sandwich as he waited for his phone to charge fully.

* * *

 _That night…_

Austin had begun to have a headache for having his phone near his ear all day long. He just wanted to sleep peacefully for a really long time.

He was irritable at the moment because of all the heated discussions he had on the phone. He called the bakery only to find that they messed the dates up and had to reorder a completely different cake on his taste since he didn't want his mother to know to not worry her.

"Red velvet on the inside. Yeah sounds great. No, I said I didn't want strawberry jam as filling," he repeated for what seemed like the millionth time to him.

He had been in a sour mood all day. It seemed like he had been bitter a lot recently. He knew his friends and family were annoyed by this, but he couldn't help the upset feeling that automatically rises in him once he sees his father.

After his longest and final call of the day, he threw his phone on the carpeted floor with a soft thud before collapsing on the couch.

He groaned when he heard his phone ring. He lazily reached for it on the floor next to the couch and answered it.

"Hello?"

"You sound tired," he heard her giggle over the phone.

Hearing her voice instantly put a smile on his face and relaxed him after his long frustrating day.

"I am," he chuckled.

"Why?" Ally asked.

He rolled to his side as he lied on the couch. He was alone in the house since everyone went out for drinks. He didn't go because he was busy and not in the mood for a drink.

"I have been on the phone literally all day with very irritating employees checking the bookings for tomorrow."

"Is everything set?" she asked. He replied, "Kinda. I mean I had to reorder the cake and change the flower order. The food also was a very annoying fix. And the minister cancelled!"

"What happened to the cake?"

"They confused the dates and gave it to another couple. Why would you take a cake you didn't order?"

She giggles as he continues, "Anyway, I placed a new order. Do you think red velvet will do?"

"It's better than the plain vanilla Mimi and Mike chose because they didn't want to go cake tasting," she laughed.

"What about the minister?" she asked.

"He suddenly decided to go on vacation and cancel all of his appointments. But don't worry, I got someone else to marry them. You'll like him."

"Why do I feel like you'll be that someone else?" she laughed.

He laughs along until she brings up the sour subject, "How have you been with your dad?"

He stands to go to his room while saying, "Wonderful. It even went better than you'd imagine when he came to tell me to take a break and go out with them."

She hummed knowingly, "Let me guess. You flipped him off and turned your back to him." He chuckled proudly as he paced in front of his bed, "Yup. Cooled me off a bit."

"You've had this permanent scowl printed on your face for the past 2 weeks," she laughed. Austin defended himself, "You can't blame me! I had to perform on crutches with green hair and spotty skin because of him!"

"Speaking of which, how's your ankle? You're not walking on it, are you?"

He rolled his eyes, "I'm _fine._ I haven't walked on it for 2 weeks. I'm sure it healed." She asked, "It doesn't hurt when you walk on it?" He winced at the pain and sat down on his bed, "Only a little discomfort, but I don't want to crutch my mom down the aisle."

"But-"

"Enough about me. How's New York?" Austin interrupted.

"It's amazing, but I really wish I didn't have to leave the day before the wedding. I wonder how much fun they're having without me," she said.

Austin sensed the sad tone in her voice, "It's okay. Everyone knows how it is with our careers. How were the interviews?"

She sighed, "They asked me about you." He nodded, "And what did you say?" She answered, "I told them you were like my brother."

He smiled, "Thank God that's a lie. That would hurt like hell if you really thought that." She giggled, "I saw an interview where you said I was like a sister to you. I was bothered by it until I remembered it's not true."

He lied down on his bed, "I love you, you know that?"

"I love you, too," he could hear the smile in her voice.

* * *

She was exhausted from her flight. She had only slept for 20 minutes in the past 36 hours. But she was going to suck it up and smile for Mimi. The 3 cups of coffee she had sure did help too, and the girls' constant chattering to catch her up on what they did the day before.

"What do you think?" Mimi asked her bridesmaids and maid of honor as she stared at her reflection in the mirror. "Honestly, I'm jealous. Your dress looks so much better than mine," Trish smiled.

"Aww, honey, I'm sure you'll look gorgeous on your wedding," Mimi gushed. "Is Austin already here?" Penny asked.

"Yeah, he came early to deal with the work outside," Cassidy straightened her skirt.

Ally announced that she was going to meet him and went downstairs. She walked between the workers rushing in the house and went to the backyard.

The reason Ally's parents' countryside house was chosen to be the venue was because of the huge garden space and they wanted an outdoor wedding. Mimi and Mike fell in love with the scenery when her parents invited them.

She found him speed-walking and bossing everyone around. His hair was messed up from running his hand through it too much. He was so into preparing everything that he didn't notice her.

She stood behind him waiting for him to notice her presence. Thinking she was a caterer he said, "I need the food to be taken inside for heating. It's too early to lay it out now. This is the third time I tell you."

"I'm on it," she replied jokingly. He recognized her voice and turned around to say something before his eyes widened and he stood speechless.

"You better brush your hair. You like you just woke up wearing a tux," she giggled. He stayed still taking in her appearance. She had a strapless floor-length red gown with a sweetheart neckline on with a soft romantic updo.

He mouthed _wow_ looking her up and down before looking around them and seeing all the busy workers around them. He grabbed her wrist and led her upstairs in a vacant room.

"Wow," was all he said as they stood facing each other in the room. "Are you gonna say something else?" she teased.

He smirked and pulled her to a deep kiss. They pulled away but stayed in their close positions.

" _Wow,"_ he repeated. She laughed at him and hugged him tighter. "But seriously, you look beautiful," he said.

"And you look handsome," she said as she reached up and ran her hands through his hair to make it look presentable again.

"And I want to tell you how proud I am of you that you're doing this for your mom even if you don't approve," she smiled sweetly at him. He let out a breath, "Yeah, I almost didn't come, but I keep thinking of her happiness."

"It's really sweet that you paid for the wedding even though she told you not to and that you're dealing with the mess downstairs instead of letting them stress," she added.

"It's really not a big deal. Plus, I got out of that house before Mike had a chance to talk to me," he smirked.

"How's my mom?" he asked. She smiled, "You want to go see her?" He nodded quickly and she led him to the master bedroom they were using for its big size.

Once they walked in he said in his usual charismatic self, "Ladies, you all look breathtaking. I am lucky that I get to see you now because the guys are gonna faint when they see you."

A series of giggles was heard before he said, "As lovely as you all look, I'm here for someone. Where is she?"

Mimi walked out of the bathroom and spotted her son, "You look handsome, sweetie."

Ally turned to look at Austin's reaction to see him standing there with his lips parted and tears in his eyes. He walked up to his mom and hugged her tightly whispering something Ally didn't comprehend to her ear.

Cassidy went to her brother and hugged him too with tears in her eyes. Ally was thankful that Kira was capturing all of these moments in her camera.

"How's Dad?" Cassidy asks him as he wraps his arm around Ally's waist.

Austin shrugged, "I wouldn't know. I left when he was in the shower." He noticed his mom's shoulders slumped a little and he knew why, "Mom, 10 years of anger won't be erased by him just showing up."

"I know, but I was hoping he'd talk to you and explain everything to you," she sighed. "He did want to talk to me yesterday, but I was just busy," he said.

"I don't want to get married knowing that you still hate him. I want us to be a family," she said pulling the guilt trick on him.

He shook his head and was about to speak before getting cut off by his phone ringing. He sighed and pulled it out, "Hello?... Oh, okay, I'll be right there."

He put it back in his pocket, "They need me downstairs," and left.

Cassidy passed around glasses of champagne and announced, "Let's have a final toast for old love rekindled!" They all clinked their glasses and took sips of their beverage.

* * *

"The guys are here!" Kira sing-songed while putting her phone away. Mimi said she wanted to be alone for a few minutes so the rest went downstairs to meet the guys.

Ally hugged all of them including the nervous shaking groom.

"Seriously, you all look gorgeous," Ryder said in awe at the girls in front him. "You are going to overshadow us at the altar," Lester joked. Elliot and Dez agreed with him while Mike said, "I didn't know all of you had such beautiful girlfriends. You sure are lucky men."

Austin glared at him because of his comment, "So my mom isn't enough for you? Is that what you're saying?" Ally felt bad her boyfriend's father as he stuttered not knowing what to say to his son.

He rolled his eyes and walked into the kitchen. Ally excused herself and followed him grateful that kitchen was empty unlike everywhere else, "Austin, what was that?!"

He put his glass down on the island, "I don't care if it's his wedding. I'm not gonna hide my feelings about him."

She stared at him for a minute before fearfully asking, "You aren't… you aren't thinking of stopping the wedding, are you?"

He gulped the rest of his drink before saying, "I haven't decided yet."

* * *

 **Here you go! I know I said this chapter was gonna have the wedding, but it didn't fit, so it will be the next chapter which will hopefully be up in a few days.**

 **Also, I got Wattpad a few days ago with the same username, secret2me2, so if you want, you can go follow me there. I haven't written anything, but I will after this story ends.**

 **I hope you liked this chapter! And don't forget to review!**


	33. A Moon Ceremony

**Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or any characters I didn't make up.**

* * *

She didn't feel good. She was panicking on the inside but smiling on the outside. She was worried Austin won't let them get married.

She tried to get him to change his mind, but he just rolled his eyes and walked out. Ally wasn't exactly happy with Austin acting this way. He was fine a few hours ago. He seemed to have tensed up when Mike arrived.

She walked back to the living room when she heard everyone cheering and laughing. Her eyes widened when she saw him.

He noticed her walking up to him and gave her a friendly hug.

"Mark! What are you doing here?" she laughed. "Austin called me saying that my invitation to his parents' wedding got upgraded. I didn't know what he meant until he said I would have a front row view of everything."

Ally confusedly asked, "What does that mean?" Austin walked up to them and proudly explained, "He's the minister that's gonna marry them!"

Ally was a little relieved to hear him say that, like he decided to not stop the wedding.

"What?! Are you even qualified?" she smiled. Mark nodded, "You can get qualified for this thing online!"

She excitedly exclaimed, "I can't believe you're here! I missed you so much!"

"I missed you too! I really expected you to fulfill your promise of visiting but you never did," he gave her a pointed look.

She blushed embarrassedly, "Sorry about that, I've been a bit busy since I moved here."

"I need to go talk to the DJ now, but we have to talk at the reception. I wanna know how my favorite top-selling artists are doing!" Mark exclaimed before walking away.

Neither of them was sure if there was gonna be a reception.

They all posed for a few photos for the photographer for a while until guests started arriving. The group went upstairs to the rooms to not take up so much space downstairs.

Finally finding some quiet, Ally went to her boyfriend, "Austin, we have to talk." He shook his head, "No, we don't."

She followed him to a vacant room, "You can't stop them from getting married." He sharply turned to her with a wild look in his eyes, "That's a decision only _I_ get to make."

"Think about their happiness. Think about your mom and sister. Think of how this will affect them," she pleaded.

"Think of what happened last time they were married! If I want to avoid disaster, I have to do this!" he raised his voice.

Ally was thankful the house was noisy already or everyone would've heard them.

She stared at him silently giving him time to cool off or she was going to yell at him too, and she didn't want to fight before the wedding.

He closed his eyes and calmly stated, "Look, I don't expect you to understand, but at least accept it. It's my choice."

He walked past her out of the room. She looked down and went to master bedroom where the bride and her bridesmaids were.

She sat down next Trish on the bed quietly as the rest engaged in a conversation.

"What's wrong?" Trish asked her as she sensed her bad mood from her silence. Ally shook her head, "Nothing."

Her best friend took her hand and led her to the same empty room she had her argument with Austin in.

"What happened?"

Ally sighed and told her everything.

"What?! Austin can't stop the ceremony!" Trish's response matched Ally's.

"I know. I tried to talk to him, but he ended up getting mad at me," she sadly said, "Well, it's not like I'm happy with him right now either."

It seemed weird with two girls in red dresses sitting alone feeling sad and worried in a vacant room in a busy house where a celebration will be taking place shortly.

They all waited for the start of the ceremony as the guests took their places. Ally thought the place was crowded before, but now, minutes before the bride walks down the aisle, it seemed too full.

She noticed Austin through the sea of workers rushing to get everything ready with his hair messed up again from running his hand through it.

Suddenly, everything got into place. The guests in their seats, the minister at the altar, the photographer in his place, the DJ ready, and it finally gave Ally the chance to appreciate the beautiful setting ahead of her.

The flowers decorated the chairs and the altar. A white carpet with red designs marked the aisle. Lanterns hung from the trees. Far enough from the ceremony, tables with white tablecloths sat with an empty space in the middle of them for the dancefloor where the reception will be taking place.

The groom and groomsmen went to their places. Ally thought of how inappropriate it looked with Dez was standing behind Mike as his best man instead of his son, but the guests didn't know the other half of the story. She knew that they were wondering where Austin was since he was not at the altar with his father.

Soon enough, the music started and Cassidy walked down the aisle with a big smile. Kira followed after her, then Trish. Ally looked behind her at Austin who was waiting with his mom.

"Think about it," she said before putting a smile on her face and walking down the aisle.

She could feel Mimi's confused stare and Austin's glare burning holes in her back.

She reached her place and watched Mimi link her arm with Austin's and walk down the aisle with teary eyes.

They glanced at each other for a moment before looking at the bride and groom.

She didn't pay attention to any of what Mark was saying. She was too busy worrying of what was about to happen.

"… speak now or forever hold your peace."

Ally saw battle in Austin's eyes as he was about to make his final decision.

She felt anxiety rise in her mind.

Her heartbeat became audible to what she thought was everyone.

But then Mark started speaking again and relief took over.

Until Austin closed his eyes and loudly said, "Wait!"

Her breath stopped and gasps were heard across the space. Trish looked at Ally with wide eyes. Everyone's jaws dropped and no one said anything. Ally's parents had horrified looks on their faces.

Austin stepped in front of his parents and said, "You can't do this."

Mike was still in shock as Mimi pleaded, "Austin, please, do-"

"You can't do this without Angel's Heart," he said.

Everyone's shocked expressions turned confused while Mike, Mimi, and Cassidy sighed in relief.

"Angel's Heart? The song you got married to the first time? You can't do this without it," he raised his eyebrows.

"Yes, honey, thank you for remembering. You're right," Mimi said panting as if she had suffered a heart attack.

"Why do you all look so relieved? What did you think I was going to do?" he chuckled.

"We thought you were going to stop them from getting married," Cassidy informed her brother with a thankful smile.

"What? No. I mean I did think about it, but I can't ruin your happiness," he smiled.

He went over to the DJ to play the song and walked back to his spot. "Proceed," he jokingly said.

Ally could finally enjoy the beautiful ceremony without fearing what she thought would happen. She even felt the tears spilling down her cheeks as she heard their incredible vows.

The mood surrounding her was amazing as they cheered and clapped the newlyweds down the aisle. Austin wasn't cheering, just clapping with a small smile on his face.

Cassidy linked her arm with her brother and walked after their parents, followed by Trish and Dez, Ryder and Kira, and Ally and Elliot.

"Are you as surprised as me?" he leaned down to her ear. She nodded and looked up at him, "Maybe even more. But I'm proud of him for not doing it." Elliot agreed, "Me too. It must be hard for him though. You know, seeing his mom marry the man that hurt her."

Ally shrugged, "Maybe. But he needs to learn that his mom is happy with him and not everything he wants he gets."

Even if she was proud of Austin for thinking of his mom's happiness, she was still upset with him. He had had an attitude for the past 2 weeks and was taking it out on everyone, including her. She knew that both of them want to enjoy the day, but she was not going to let this slide, even for the day.

The sun was still bright above them all. They knew they had all afternoon and night to celebrate.

"Let's get this party started!" Kira exclaimed when they reached their table.

* * *

 **I never expected the wedding to take more than two chapters, but the reception will have to be in the next chapter.**

 **Review!**


	34. A Moon Wedding

**Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or any characters I didn't make up.**

* * *

"The only reason we attacked him with cake last night is because we knew Mimi won't do it today," Ryder defended himself.

The bride rolled her eyes, "Who said that? What if I was going to do it?"

"Are you?" Elliot teased. She laughed, "No, but what if I was going to do it?"

"That would've been a bonus," Dez stated.

"Thank you for discussing throwing cake at me in front of me," Mike chuckled, "but I would rather stay clean today."

"You should do what me and Lester did at our vow renewal last year," Penny commented not being able to contain her laugh.

"Oh, yeah! Remember that one, Ally?" Lester asked.

Austin looked at his girlfriend who was laughing to herself. "Yeah, you guys had a full on cake fight instead of eating it. You even got the minister covered in cake."

"Why am I suddenly glad I wasn't your minister at that time?" Mark piped up making everyone burst in laughter.

"Maybe we should have a cake fight today," Mimi declared. Austin and Mike exclaimed at the same time, "No!"

He glared at his father for speaking the same thing he said until Ally nudged him.

"I mean, Austin has put a lot of effort into making it delicious for us, so we better eat it than waste it," Mike said.

"Ladies and gentlemen, please help me welcome the bride and groom for their first slow dance as husband and wife!"

"You mean second," Austin muttered under his breath, but not going unheard by Ally as she elbowed him while smiling at the newlyweds make their way to the center of the dancefloor.

Everyone went to circle the dancefloor to watch.

"Stop it. Let them enjoy their wedding," Ally stated as they made their way to the front of the crowd. "I can't help it," he shrugged. She smirked at him and knew what she was going to say would change his mood, "Sing it out?" He smiled and nodded as he put his headset on.

 **Austin:**  
 _Took my hand_ **(1)** _  
Touched my heart  
Held me close  
You were always there_

By my side  
Night and day  
Through it all  
Baby come what may

Swept away on a wave of emotion

 **He kept his eyes at the dancing couple in front of him** _  
Over caught in the eye of the storm  
And whenever you smile  
I can hardly believe that you're mine  
Believe that you're mine_

 **All:** _  
This love is unbreakable  
It's unmistakable  
_ **Dez:**

 _And each time I look in your eyes  
I know why_

 **All:** _  
This love is untouchable  
I feeling my heart just can't deny  
Each time I look in your eyes_

 **Austin:** _  
Oh baby, I know why  
This love is unbreakable_

 **Elliot:**

 _Shared the laughter  
Shared the tears  
We both know  
We'll go on from here_

Cause together we are strong  
In my arms  
That's where you belong

 **All four of them turned to their girlfriends and led them to circle Austin's parents** _  
_ **All:** _  
I've been touched by the hands of an angel_ **The girls' eyes widened in surprise as they were dragged to the dancefloor** _  
I've been blessed by the power of love  
And whenever you smile  
I can hardly believe that you're mine  
_ **The four couple started slow dancing around the bride and groom going in circles** _  
This love is unbreakable  
It's unmistakable_

 **Austin: He looked into her eyes and ignored everyone else around them** _  
Each time I look in your eyes  
I know why_

 **All:** _  
This love is untouchable  
I feeling my heart just can't deny_

 **Austin: He sang softly as her eyes filled with tears** _  
Each time you whisper my name  
Oh baby, I know why_

 **Ryder:**

 _This love is unbreakable  
Through fire and flame _**They twirled their dates as the bride was dipped down in her groom's arms** _  
When all this is over  
Our love still remains_

 **All:**

 _This love is unbreakable  
It's unmistakable  
And each time I look in your eyes  
I know why  
This love is untouchable  
I feeling my heart just can't deny  
Each time you whisper my name  
Oh baby, I know why  
Cause each time I look in your eyes  
Oh baby, I know why_

 **Austin: They stopped dancing as he wiped away her tears**

 _This love is unbreakable_

All five couples shared a deep kiss as guests applauded.

"How come you didn't tell me we were gonna dance too?" she asked him as she straightened his tie.

"None of the girls knew, except for our moms. We wanted to surprise you," he smiled softly.

He took her hand as they walked back to their table where everyone was getting seated.

"That was a beautiful song. I hope you have one prepared for our wedding," Trish commented as they sat down.

"Your wedding has another song ready for it," Austin said.

Ally noticed him wincing from the corners of her eyes and immediately asked, "Are you okay?" He nodded, "Yeah, just a little discomfort because of my ankle." She looked at him uncertainly and he sighed, "I'm fine, Alls. Don't worry." She nodded and turned back to the conversation among the girls on the table.

All eyes went to him when he abruptly stood up. "What?" he furrowed his eyebrows, "My mom is waving me over to talk to some guests." Ally said, "But you have to rest your ankle." He shook his head with a smile at her, "It's fine," and walked away.

By sunset, it was time to cut the cake. A small table with a 3 tier cake on it was rolled to the center of the dancefloor.

"It's even more beautiful than the one we picked," Mimi told her son as she laid eyes on it. "Glad you like it, because even the inside is different," he chuckled.

Everyone cheered and clapped as they cut the cake, except Austin, who lazily clapped his hands.

They went back to the table and waited for their pieces of cake to arrive to them.

"It looks delicious. Maybe it's a smart decision to eat it instead of fighting with it," Dez said. "Someone agrees with me," Mike nodded towards him.

Ally noticed something when she got her plate that made her exclaim, "Austin! Don't eat it!"

He dropped his fork immediately as his eyes widened in fright, "What! What's wrong?!" She separated her cake in the center where vanilla cream was and showed him the stuffing in the center.

His eyes narrowed and he marched to the cake decorator that was cutting the cake.

"I specifically ordered no strawberry jam in this cake, and what do I find? Strawberry jam in this cake," he intimidatingly said.

"What?" the man in front of him said as he checked the receipt, "No, Mr. Moon, it says 'more strawberry jam."

Austin looked at the piece of paper he was holding, "Who wrote my order down?" The man answered, "Our new intern."

He sighed, "Well, maybe keep your interns away from customer service and use professionals to avoid this happening."

The cake decorator's eyes softened, "I'm sorry, Mr. Moon. I understand if you choose not to pay." Austin shook his head, "No, no, I'll pay, but your tip's gone."

He turned on his heels and went back to his seat. "So what happened?" Kira asked him as soon as he sat down. "Apparently their intern took my order and messed it up. I told him I won't tip," he explained.

"Are you really not gonna tip?" Cassidy asked. He replied, "I know I will. I can't do that just because his intern messes up. It's not his fault." His mom asked, "What are you gonna do?"

"Since I can't eat the cake, I can do this!" he stood up and grabbed his cake in his hand and threw at Ally.

She gasped and stood up to throw her cake at him. He ducked and the cake hit Cassidy instead. She grabbed her piece and was about to throw it at Ally, but her brother came behind her and grabbed her wrist and aimed her throw at Dez.

"Oh, no, you don't!" Trish exclaimed and defended her fiancé by chucking her cake at Austin in which he pulled Kira in front of him as shield.

"Oh, I can't eat it if my son can't," Mimi said as she dropped it on her husband's head. "Oh, it's on!" Mike yelled as everyone in their table stood up and started throwing cake at each other.

They have attracted the entire garden's attention. Guests were laughing from far away to keep themselves from getting caked, workers were enjoying the scene as they stopped doing their jobs, and the photographer took his chance to take pictures.

Ally yelped as Austin picked her up and made her sit on a chair with cake on it. She felt it squish under her weight and playfully whimpered.

"What's going on?!" they heard Mark's voice yell. They turned to look at him come out of the house. Looking at each other they all screamed at the same time, "Cake the minister!"

Mark yelled in fear as they all threw cake at him.

After running out of cake they all leaned down in laughter trying to catch their breath. Ally doesn't remember the last time she laughed so hard that she felt pain in her abdomen.

She leaned into her boyfriend as she tried to stop laughing, but every time she looked around her, she bursts into laughter again.

"Okay, okay. Fun over! Everyone go clean up!" Lester finally said after he stopped laughing.

"Last time I ever be a minister," Mark muttered as he followed them inside. "Aw, all I hear is bitterness," Austin commented with a smile as they headed upstairs.

The girls went to the master bedroom while the guys went to a vacant room.

She couldn't stop her giggles as she cleaned Trish's hair while Trish cleaned her hair. They kept their hair in their updos and only cleaned of the small bits they saw. The most damage was done to their makeup and gowns.

After redoing their makeup, they wet a piece of cloth and wiped at their gowns. "This isn't going to work," Kira sighed as she wiped her ruined dress.

"Ally, don't we have some dresses that we store here?" Penny asked as she opened the closet to find her and her daughter's many dresses that they had to keep here because they didn't fit in their closets at home.

Fifteen minutes later, Ally was dresses in yellow halter top dress that reached just above her knees. Mimi had the special beige gown Penny insisted she wears.

Ally went to the bathroom down the hall for some air to find it occupied. "Oh, I'm sorry. I d-didn't mean to," she stammered as he turned around.

"Ally, it's fine. I'm only cleaning my hair," he chuckled as he faced the mirror again. He had taken his tie and suit jacket off and his sleeves were rolled to his elbows. She closed the door behind her and went to help him with his hair that was stuck with cream.

"You were limping up here," she quietly stated as she wet her hand to run through his hair. "I just walked on it too much," he said, "Stop worrying, Princess. Enjoy the day." Thankfully she dropped the subject.

"I see that your dress was a lost hope," he noted. She laughed, "Yeah, all of us."

"You still look beautiful," he smiled as she finally finished his hair. She leaned up and kissed him deeply.

Suddenly, the door swung open pushing Ally into Austin. She gasped as they stumbled into the wall. Dez popped his head in and yelled out, "Found them! They were swapping spit in the bathroom. Dinner's served."

With a mock disappointed shake of his head he left. She covered her face with her hands in embarrassment.

"Like they don't do that," Austin scoffed as he followed her to the garden.

He shivered as the wind blew through his damp hair. They headed directly towards the buffet while talking to some guests.

During dinner Austin and Cassidy stood up for a speech.

"Before we start, I have to tell you that we didn't practice anything," Cassidy into a microphone. "We're just going to speak from our hearts," Austin continued.

"Mom, Dad, you have no idea how happy I am for you. You both have been through so much," Cassidy's voice cracked with tears.

"No matter how much I don't want you to do this, Mom, I want you to be happy. You were my hero growing up, and I'm glad to see that you're doing something for yourself this time," Austin said.

"The last year has been so frustrating with trying to bring our family back together, and you have been so brave for us," she continued.

"I can't even tell you how thankful I am for everything you've done for us," he emphasized each word to mean it.

"Dad, I don't blame you for leaving. And I'm happy that you're back and now we can be a real family," Cassidy said.

"Well, I do, but that's beside the point," Austin said making some laugh, but not his family or friends, "Mom, you were there for me all the time, and I hope by doing this, I can pay you back a bit."

"I feel really good about us being a family again, as long as I'm your favorite child," Cassidy smiled.

Austin stopped and looked at his sister, "You mean, _I'm_ the favorite child."

"Um, no, I'm pretty sure they prefer me over you," she teased. "If you're the favorite child, why was I the one to get the car?" he argued. "Because Mom knew you wouldn't be responsible enough to go buy one!" she said.

"No! Mom said it was because I was the better driver out of us two!" he defended. "So now I can't drive?!" she argued.

"MOM!" they both yelled at the same time turning to their mom. She gave them a small smile, "I'm not getting in the middle of this."

They glared at each other and stuck their tongues out.

"Anyway, cheers to finding happiness," Austin put his glass up. "And to love!" Cassidy continued. Everyone clapped and took a sip.

Ally looked at the lanterns that looked even better after the sunset. Those lanterns were the only source of light. They had so much hanging from everywhere that the garden had a romantic golden light casting it.

"I really enjoyed today," Mimi said with a big smile. "Me too," Mike agreed.

"Oh, I bet you didn't enjoy your first one. Maybe because you were only planning on wasting her time. What makes today different?" Austin suddenly said.

Ally's head snapped up in alarm like everyone else in this table. "Austin…" she said warningly.

"What? I'm just wondering if he'll do the same thing. What makes this time different, Mike?" he said plainly as if saying a normal thing.

Ally felt terrible for the man in front of her as he stammered not knowing how to answer his son. Everything was going great, why did he have to ruin it?

To make up for a lost childhood by ruining something for his father, she guessed.

Mike looked at his wife for help but she had an equally horrified expression.

"I think I'm going to go talk to some guests," Lester said before getting up and pulling Penny with him. "Me too," everyone except Austin, Ally, Cassidy, Elliot, and the newlyweds said in unison.

"I love her, Austin," he started carefully. "Didn't stop you from leaving the first time," Austin shrugged and took a sip.

"Okay, dude, think you can save this for another day?" Elliot commented. "Nah, I think I'm good," he said. "Seriously, Austin?" Cassidy asked as she stood up making her boyfriend stand up too, "We have a great day and then you decide to ruin it? You couldn't even let us enjoy this wedding. I'm done with you. You always ruin it for us. Can you for once not be this selfish?"

"Selfish? I have not been selfish!" Austin stood up, "I paid for this wedding for God's sake! All to make you happy! And just because I try to protect you from him, I'm selfish?!"

"I appreciate you doing all of this for me, honey," Mimi said quietly while getting up, "But I have told you millions of times before that you don't have to protect me from him. And if you want to not enjoy tonight and do this, then you can stay alone."

They turned their backs to him and walked into the crowd smiling and having fun.

Ally turned around and walked to the house. "Wait, Ally!" she heard behind her. "Hey!" he exclaimed as he grabbed her wrist to stop her from going any further, "Where are you going?"

She looked at him and spoke with a shaking voice, "As your mom said, if you don't want to have fun tonight, you can stay alone."

She yanked her wrist from his grasp and continued walking. "You're mad at me too?!" he asked when he ran in front of her. "Not mad," she said gently, "disappointed."

She left him standing there and went upstairs to the bedroom they were sharing. She had had enough for today.

She heard the sound of glass breaking from her room and knew that was Austin letting his anger out on a poor photo frame he saw in front of him.

She almost went to see if he's okay, but she didn't. To make her point clear, she had to stay strong, no matter how worried she got about him.

She thought couples have a good night after weddings, but she was wrong in their case. They were the only couple that night that didn't sleep next to each other, that definitely increased the tension in that house.

 _That'll teach him to stop attacking his father._

* * *

 **(1) Unbreakable- Westlife**

 **I didn't mean to make this chapter so long, oops. I had to rewrite it 3 times and I'm still not proud of it. But I want to get to other parts in this story so here you go, the last wedding chapter.**

 **Note: I will not be updating until I get at least 5 reviews on this chapter.**

 **Instagram: _ .ally**


	35. Melody

**Yeah, I know. I update this story too often.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or any characters I didn't make up.**

* * *

Ally sighed for the millionth time since she went to bed. Sleep refused to come no matter how hard she tried. She was worried about Austin and his family. She knows she shouldn't get into the middle of this mess, but she couldn't help but feel responsible for how he acts.

As Cassidy once told her, she was the only person he was willing to talk to about his problems. If he didn't have her to be there for him, who would he have?

But being there for him also meant sparking problems between them. She would get mad at him for not listening to his parents and he would get mad at her for taking their side. This irritating cycle could only end if he listens to his father's explanation.

Except, knowing Austin, he won't give up his anger against his father for an explanation. He thinks he knows all. He thinks that what he thinks of his father is the right thing.

Another reason for why she keeps getting into his family problems is that she doesn't want him to regret not letting his dad in one day. She doesn't want to see him drowning in regret and guilt one day for not listening.

She got up and put a pair of trainers on. She skipped over the bodies sleeping on the floor for lack of beds in this house. She quietly went downstairs and saw him sleeping on the couch alone. He hasn't changed his clothes from the wedding and wasn't even covered in a blanket.

She couldn't help but take a throw blanket and put it on his sleeping figure. She noticed his ankle was propped up on the armrest. She felt relieved that he was resting it now. He could hurt it a lot more by not taking care of it.

She silently went to the garden that now without all the chairs and tables seemed so much bigger. She walked to the place she hasn't been to in years.

"Melody," she whispered as she approached the stable. She sighing happily to see her old horse awake. "I missed you so much," she ran her hand on her short fur and she was met with a soft neigh.

She grabbed her rope and led her to the garden. Ally felt happy and carefree for a moment when she finally sat down on the saddle. She was reminded of her younger years learning to ride her.

"Come on, let's go for a ride," she softly said and motioned Melody to walk slowly. "Sorry, I'm a bit rusty," Ally giggled when she accidentally made her stop sharply and make a loud noise that hopefully didn't wake anyone up.

"Do you always talk to your horse?" a voice startled her. Ally pulled the rope to make Melody turn to the direction of the voice to see Austin standing there.

"Yeah. Sometimes I feel like she's the only one that listens," she replied a little too accusingly. He sighed, "You're still mad?"

"Not mad," she repeated, "disappointed." She restarted her ride on a quicker pace and ignored his presence. "I'm sorry, okay?" he stated desperately.

"Don't apologize to me. Apologize to your family," she brushed him off.

"Fine," he said watching her and her horse going around him, "I'll apologize to Mom and Cass in the morning."

"What about your dad? Isn't he part of your family too?" she asked. He was getting frustrated, she knew that, but it was all for his sake.

"No. He should've known that when he walked out on us, he was no longer considered family," he scoffed. "Do you even know why he walked out on you?" she stopped in front of him.

He stepped to the side to avoid horse breath and said, "No. But nothing makes it okay."

"Ever thought that your father's explanation might actually make it okay?" she pressed not being able to contain her anger. "No. Because it's gonna be 'I wasn't good enough for you' and that's bullshit. If he wasn't good enough, why didn't he stay and try to get better? Why did he leave us to drown?" he snapped.

She sighed and got off her horse to stand in front of him, "I know his reason. And I can assure you it's not that." He rolled his eyes, "Cass has already told me that his explanation will make everything okay."

"And I'm telling you this again now. Why won't you believe us?" she argued, but she felt her anger dissolve when she saw him let out a breath and sadness take over his features.

"I guess…" he started, "I'm just not ready." She furrowed her eyebrows in confusion, "What do you mean?"

"I spent 10 years making him into the monster I see him now. I didn't expect to see him this nice and loving. It's just hard to let go of what I thought was true for so long, especially when he could suddenly turn into that monster," he looked down.

"You need to have more faith in him," she said gently. He looked at the house and swallowed, "I had faith in him that he would come back every day for a year and he didn't. I don't want that disappointment to come back. That's why I have to protect my mom and sister. Although I obviously failed."

"When will you be ready to hear him out?" she asked. He turned his head to look at her, "Someday."

"You told Cassidy that same thing a while ago. When is that someday gonna happen?" she ran her hand through her hair. He looked down at his shoes, "Someday."

They were interrupted by a neigh coming from beside them. Ally smiled and ran her hand through her horse's hair. "So this is Melody, huh?" he asked suddenly smiling as he went to her other side to stroke her fur.

Ally nodded proudly, "Yep, she's my childhood." He looked at her over Melody's chocolate brown fur astounded, "You've had her since you were a kid?"

Her smile suddenly turned sad, "Yeah. Sh-she's getting a bit old, but…"

His eyes softened at her tone, "It's okay, Alls. Just spend her last days with her making the best memories."

His attempt at making her feel better was not as successful as he thought, but she let it pass since he had no idea how to comfort a sad girl about her horse's inevitable destiny. His effort was appreciated though. She smiled at him and nodded before leading Melody back to the stables. They walked to the trees and sat under one watching the sunrise.

"Who caught the bouquet?" she asked out of nowhere. "Trish," he replied, "How fitting since she's the next one to get married." She giggled and leaned on the trunk.

"You know, I was kinda disappointed when I didn't see you there," he confessed. She said, "Kira called me, but I refused to come."

"Because you were still upset with me?" he guessed ashamedly.

"No, because I didn't want to be the one catching it," she corrected. He looked at her confusedly, "Why not?"

She picked at the grass next to her, "If I was the one to catch it, it would mean I'd be the next one to get married. It just didn't seem appropriate, even if it's just a myth."

She knew that he was hurt by her saying that, but she had to be honest with him.

"How would that be inappropriate?" he questioned. She sighed, "They've all been together for at least 2 years. We've only been together for 2 and half months. If anyone should be getting to the next stage, it should be them, not us."

"Wow, I never thought marrying me would have to do with others' relationships," he let out a humorless laugh and looked away from her. "It's not like that," he heard her say, "It's just that we're still at the very beginning, let's not jump ahead."

"So you have no problem marrying me in the future," he smiled hopefully as he watched her blush.

"I'm not gonna deny that I have thought about it, but we need to see where this takes us. The world doesn't even know about us yet. Let's take this step by step," Ally stated.

He leaned back on his hands, "I've always imagined our wedding being here." She smiled widely at the thought of him thinking of a future with her, "I could ride Melody down the aisle."

"She's not gonna poop on the carpet though, right?" he chuckled. "No promises," she replied with a smile.

They sat in silence after the sun was completely shining on them. "How's your ankle?" she quietly asked. "It was sore after the wedding, but Trish massaged it for me and it immediately felt better. But you know Trish. She scolded me for walking too much on it," he snickered.

"Good. She did it instead of me," she smiled.

Austin noticed her yawn, "Sleepy?" She nodded, "I haven't had much sleep in the past 2 days." It's true. She was in New York and flew in for the wedding with almost zero sleep only to spend the night twisting and turning in her bed then come out for a ride on her horse.

He lied down on the grass and pulled her to lie next to him with her head on his chest.

"Sleep now," he kissed her head. "I love you," she muttered before closing her eyes. "I love you too," he replied. Ally laughed when she heard a neigh from behind them in the stable, "I think Melody just mocked us." He smiled, "I think I know where she gets that sassiness from." In response, she swatted his chest before he grabbed it in his free hand and laid them both on his chest intertwined.

* * *

 **Here's a small chapter of cute Auslly. It's been a while since I've had a calm chapter like this. Next chapter is gonna be the album release party.**

 **You can follow me on Wattpad if you want! That's where any of my future stories will be posted. Same username there, secret2me2.**

 **I think I'm gonna be replying to some reviews from now on, starting now because your reviews were awesome last chapter:**

 _ **Guest: This chapter was amazing! The part with the cake and the dance was so cute! Can't wait to read more! Just out of curiosity, about how many chapters do you plan for there to be?**_

 **I don't know exactly how much, maybe around 15-20 more chapters, maybe less. We're still only halfway done with this story. I have an image of where I want it to go and I know how everything will play out and I hope you like it.**

 _ **Guest: this update was amazing! in fact this story in general is so original and interesting! I love it! I also love how you keep it fluent and captivating and dont make it drag on! You're an excellent writer with good eye for creativity and I love this about your work. Personally i love the lengths of your chapters and also very, very much appreciate the fact that you update so frequently and and consistently. I literally wait for your updates! I love it! Keep going! Xx**_

 **You have no idea how happy you just made me! I literally can't stop smiling! Thank you so much for reading and supporting this story! I really hope you continue to like it as it continues as well as any of my future work!**

 _ **Guest: This is really good and I can't wait to see what comes next!**_

 **Thanks! I can't wait for you to see what happens next! This story is far from over;)**

 _ **Sicklscaler: I am glad the wedding is over. I really want Mike to tell Austin why! Making up is so much fun. Let's hope it goes well for them.**_

 **Me too… me too... But who says Austin is willing to listen? He's too stubborn. He even bugs me sometimes.**

 _ **Guest: I LOVED IT. UPDATE SOON**_

 **Thanks! I always start working on another chapter the day after I update the story because it takes a few days to write, but I hope you'll love it even more after you see what happens next!**

 _ **Girlwriter23: Love the story... I really wanted to see Austin being right on this. I mean he should listen to his dad but I think he should at listen be somewhat right about it. I really love this chapter. I wish Ally will just stay out of the family problem and Cassidy try to listen to Austin perspective. Love he story though.**_

 **Thank you so much for reading! Your review is actually the reason I wrote Ally's thoughts at the beginning of this chapter! I hope it explains it all to you!**


	36. Album Release Party

**Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or any characters I didn't make up.**

* * *

"Mom, can you help me pick out what to wear? Ally's still not here," Austin asked as he entered his kitchen. "Sure thing, sweetie," Mimi smiled before going up to his room.

"Dez, can you call Ally and the girls and ask them when they're getting here?" he said as he got some water. Dez finished his glass of water and smiled, "Sure thing, sweetie." Austin glared at his laughing bandmates before going to his room.

"That's itchy."

"It's too small."

"I haven't washed that since I bought it."

"Makes me look rectangular."

"I look like a pumpkin in this."

"I'll stand out too much."

"This looks terrible on camera."

"Okay!" his mother exclaimed after his 7th outfit got rejected. She rummaged through more of his messy closet before pulling out a peach-colored blouse. "Why do you have this?" she asked confusedly.

He felt warmth rise to his cheeks and look down at his shoes, "Uh, that's Ally's." She put it back quickly, "Why doesn't she come help you? You obviously don't like anything I pick."

"She's not here yet and we're already late," he said. "What's she wearing?" Mimi asked. "A black and grey dress," he replied.

"Let's match you with her. It will make you look more like a couple," she decided.

"You sure you don't want to come today?" he asked. She shook her head, "It's not really my scene. Besides, your father is taking me out on a date."

"Enjoy yourself with him," he sarcastically muttered resulting in getting hit in the back of the head. "Sorry," he winced rubbing his head.

They waited backstage to walk the red carpet lined with cameras and paparazzi. "I can't believe we're finally doing this," she nervously said.

"Me too," he agreed, "Are you ready?" She nodded, "I think so."

"Come on, guys, you don't need to be scared. Worst thing they can do is ruin your careers," Ryder said encouragingly. "That does not help, you idiot," Austin said gritting his teeth.

"Don't listen to him," Kira smiled. "Yeah, they've been wanting you two together for months," Trish added. "That doesn't apply to all of the fans. Some of them _really_ hate me," Ally emphasized.

"They can't all be big fans of Austin either," Cassidy said earning her a middle finger from her brother.

"It's time!" Elliot announced before he and Cassidy stepped into the carpet. After the last couple before them left, Austin grabbed her hand and was about to lead her to the carpet before being pulled back by her.

"What's wrong?" he asked. She took a deep breath, "I just want to feel like a normal couple for the last time." He nodded, "Take your time." He peeked out onto the carpet before saying, "But not too much time. They're going crazy out there."

"Let's do this," she sighed before walking out.

Cheers and chants got a lot louder the moment they stepped out. He wrapped his arm around her waist and smiled for the cameras.

Ignoring the numerous questions being thrown at them, Ally looked up at him, "Let's make this official." He cupped her face and brought her into a deep passionate kiss.

They tried to ignore the flashes and noise around them. "Well, I guess they're happy," he said as he leaned his forehead against hers. "Not all of them. I heard some boo's," she informed.  
"Then we ignore them," he smiled before leading her to the group photo.

Ally let out a deep breath as she stepped outside the building to the empty red carpet they walked on just 2 hours ago. She let her head clear from all the noise inside. Although fun, all the conversations, picture taking, and music eventually got too much for her. She never usually walks out on public events, but she got tired of everyone asking her about her relationship. Some were even judging them for lying to everyone.

"Are you okay?" she heard behind her. She turned around to see Ryder standing there, "Yeah, I just needed some air."

"It's really crowded in there," he agreed. "You don't have to stay here with me, Ryder," she smiled.

He sat down on the floor leaning against the wall, "I needed to get out of there too." She took a seat next to him and sighed.

"There's something on your mind."

She looked at him shocked, "How did you know?"

"You're not your usual giggly, upbeat self," he said.

"You think Austin noticed? I tried to not worry him," she asked.

He nodded, "He did. He was about to follow you out here, but he got swarmed by reporters. What's wrong?"

She shrugged, "I don't know. I'm just worried about us going public."

"Didn't you get mad at him a while ago for not wanting to go public?"

"I know, and I'm glad we did come out, but what if this ruins it for us?" she questioned. He furrowed his brows, "How could it ruin it for you?"

"You know how many celebrity couples break up because of the media. Not everything I heard today was positive," she laughed lightly to hide her sadness.

"I still don't understand why you care about what everyone else thinks. If you're really in love, nothing else would matter," he said.

"I know, and you're right. But in our careers, what people think of us actually matters," she sighed.

"When me and Kira went public, people went crazy and hated her. But we didn't care and focused on each other. When they saw that she wasn't going anywhere, they gave up trying to make me leave her. They love her now. Real fans don't break your happiness," he spoke.

"You really love her, don't you?" she smiled. He nodded and blushed, "That's why I want to take it the next level with her."

She gasped and shifted to sit in front of him, "Ryder, you're gonna propose?!"

"I haven't decided when yet, but I have a plan in my head."

"Why didn't you do it today?" she asked. "We have enough weddings in this year. I'm thinking sometime next year, maybe her birthday," he replied.

She squealed excitedly, "I can't believe you're actually gonna do it!"

He laughed, "And you're back. But don't tell anyone, even the guys. You're the only one that knows."

She nodded and stood up reaching her hand out to help him up. "Thanks, Ryder," she said before hugging him.

They went back in and rejoined the group. "Ally," Austin said as he took her to an empty corner, "I was just about to come look for you. Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. I just needed some air," she smiled. "You were acting weird," he said worriedly.

"I was. I talked about everything with Ryder and I feel better now," she replied.

"Anything I should know about?" he asked. She shook her head, "Nope."

She caught Ryder looking at her from the corner of her eyes. He smiled and winked at her.

Turning back to her boyfriend, she leaned in and placed a soft kiss on his cheek. "Let's have fun tonight," she said.

* * *

 _One week later…_

"I really hate not being there with you for this," he huffed.

"You had to go to LA for work. It's only four days. Plus, I wouldn't have let you come even if you were here," she kept her eyes on the road as she spoke to him through her phone on speaker.

"What if he tries to do something?"

"He can't. I chose the busiest café in town," she replied. "Aren't you scared? I mean he is your _abusive_ ex-boyfriend," he said.

"I'm terrified. But I have to do this if I want to end things completely with him."

"If he tries anything, and I mean _anything_ , you call me immediately. I don't care if I'm in the interview. Got it, Alls?" he ordered.

She rolled her eyes as she parked her car a distance from the café where it was much less crowded, "Yes, yes. I need to go, Aus. I'll talk to you later."

With a last "Be careful," he hung up.

She sat down at the table in front of him and sternly said, "Let's get this over with."

 _2 hours later…_

Ally walked out of the café feeling happier than ever. She felt a like a load has been taken off her chest. She put her phone to her ear when it rang, "Hello?"

"That took a long time," she could hear the frown in his voice.

She started her long walk to her car and giggled, "Well, it took a long time to get the point across."

"Based on your laugh, I'm guessing everything went well," he assumed.

"Yup. He didn't try to do anything at all. It was like I was having lunch with a friend."

"What did you agree on?" he asked. She answered, "He will move back to LA and never try to contact me again as long as I drop the restraining order and keep the subject from the spotlight."

"I'm glad-" Ally didn't get to hear the rest because she was pulled into an alley making her drop her phone and hit in the head.

"Ally?! Ally?! What happened?!" he shouted into his phone when he heard her let out a blood curdling scream.

"If I can't have you, no one can," he spat into her face before she lost consciousness.

"FUCK!" Austin yelled as he threw his phone against the wall smashing it.

The guys burst in worried. "What happened?" Dez asked.

"We need to get to Miami! Now!" he exclaimed as he pushed past them to the parking lot.

"Why?" Elliot yelled as they ran after him to the car.

"Scott," he said. Their eyes widened as they got in the car quickly.

 _Please be okay, Alls. Please._

* * *

 **Well that escalated quickly;)**

 **I had to rewrite this chapter 3 times to get to this. It's still not my best work, but I need to put it up to move on in the story. I hope you like it though!**

 **Not updating until this chapter gets at least 5 reviews.**


	37. Candy

**Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or any characters I didn't make up.**

* * *

" _Ally Dawson has gone missing less than 3 days ago with no sign of her until now. Her car was found parked in front of the abandoned building near The Lucky Café and her phone was found on the curb in front of an alley meaning that that was the location of the kidnapping. Police is investigating this case right now, but the results so far don't look very optimistic._

" _Ally's family and friends as well as boyfriend Austin Moon have released a statement requesting anyone who has any information about her disappearance at all call the number at the bottom of the screen. You will be answered by the officer in charge and given a reward from her family. They have also requested that their privacy be respected in this tough time to focus on bringing Ally home. All prayers go to Ally and her loved ones and we hope to help as much as we can to save her."_

Ryder turned off the TV as Austin made his way upstairs to Ally's childhood room.

He sighed and sat on the bed pulling his new phone out. He stared at the photos they took from the wedding again. He smiled at the one where Ally was laughing in his arms while covered in cake.

Never did he think that this would happen after that amazing time.

He got up and went to the front door before being pulled back by Dez. "What are you gonna do, man? Wander around there again until you find something?" he asked.

Austin nodded, "The cops aren't doing enough, so I'm taking matters into my own hands."

Everyone stared at him for a few seconds before Mike and Lester stood up.

"We're coming with you to find my daughter," Lester announced. "We are too," Ryder said as he, Elliot, and Dez walked up to him.

"Us too," the girls said as well as the moms.

Austin backed up into the door and shook his head, "No. I need to do this alone to focus. I-I can't handle all of you with me when I find her. I'm gonna kill Scott and I don't want you to see that."

After a moment of silence, Penny said, "Go. Save her."

He sighed appreciatively and opened the door and headed to his car.

"Austin?"

"Yeah?" he turned to see Trish standing there.

"Be careful. And come home. Both of you."

He nodded and got into his car driving to the alley Ally was kidnapped in. Once he arrived, he grabbed his gun and flashlight from the glove compartment and stepped out of the car into the night.

He tucked his gun into the waistband of his jeans and covered it with his shirt. Turning the flashlight on, he crouched down near the wall of the alley.

He furrowed his brows at a small dry amount of blood on the ground. He gritted his teeth angrily at the thought of him hurting her.

He noticed a smudge of blood on the wall seemed very familiar. The police must have thought it was nothing and ignored it. He looked closer and identified letters.

"'WH edge'" he muttered to himself, "What does that even mean?"

A sudden noise startled him making him point the light in the direction he heard it from. He noticed footprints and dry spots of blood leading farther into the alley.

Austin slowly followed them and found that they lead to an empty street. He growled and punched the wall next to him frustrated.

He felt tears in his eyes when he thought he was never going to find her. He crouched down and leaned against the wall and sighed.

A cat meowed next to him. Figuring it was the source of the noise he felt disappointment sink even deeper.

He ran his hand through its fur noticing its name on its collar and laughed sadly, "Hey, Candy, are you lost? I'm lost too. Without her, everything seems out of balance. Well not seems, it is out of balance."

It meowed in response to him. He felt pathetic talking to a lost cat in an alley while his girlfriend was still missing, but at this point, he felt numb.

"Is that how you feel without your owner? I'm guessing yes because I have no fucking clue what to do without Ally. I know what you're thinking. Why am I sitting here instead of trying to find her? I've been trying for the past 3 days. I haven't slept or eaten. I keep looking through the evidence the police found. It's not helping though. I came here to look for evidence myself and I'm still confused as hell."

"I guess that's why you're wandering around, Candy. You're looking for something that'll lead you home. You might be luckier than me at that."

It nudged him in agreement making him smile sadly.

"Truth is, sometimes giving up seems easier than looking for something for a long time. You get tired of caring. But what if finding that something will give you the best feeling you've ever had in your life? What if it will make all the angst worth it?

"I keep telling myself that, that if… when I find Ally, it'll all be worth it. I'll be able to see her smile again, hear her voice again, see her again. Without her, love just seems like a lost cause."

He looked down at it and got up, "Come on, Candy. I'll take you home. There's no point in both of us being lost."

He picked it up and read its collar for the address and started heading in that direction. "I seem like a lazy idiot, I know. But don't worry, I won't stop until I find her. And when I do, I'll tell her how quiet you are. You're the quietest cat I've ever seen."

Candy meowed making him smile again. "You're the first to make me smile in 3 days. I bet Ally would love to hear about you. She loves animals. She has had a horse since she was a kid. Melody is getting pretty old, and that breaks Ally's heart.

"But you know what's the good thing about losing something close to your heart? It always teaches you something. That's the thing I hate and love the most.

"Losing Ally taught me that I should never take her for granted. Cheesy, I know, but not knowing where she is, if she's okay, makes me think of all the times we had each other that we didn't think so much of. I definitely miss those times.

"Even though it's only been 3 months, I still can't make it without her. She's the one who helped me think straight when my father suddenly showed up. She's the one keeping me from jumping to conclusions. It's not like I'm listening to her telling me to talk to my father, but I appreciate her effort in trying to get me closer to him. What would I do without her?

"Anyone who would hear me right now would think Ally's dead," his breath hitched in his throat as he stopped in his tracks with wide eyes before he shook his head, "but she's not. She's alive. She'll make it out."

He walked up the steps on the porch and rang the doorbell. A petite woman who looked as old as his mom opened the door and gasped when she saw Candy.

Austin tried to ignore the bile rising up his throat at how she seemed to be as small as Ally.

"Candy! I'm so happy to see you! Why did you wander off?" the woman exclaimed as she grabbed it from Austin's arms.

Her eyes widened when she noticed him and called, "Amy! Get in here!"

A 16-year-old girl ran up to the door and gasped lightly. "Tell Austin Moon what you know," the woman ordered.

"You know something?!" Austin asked finally feeling a little hope.

"I know where she is," she said.

"Where?!" he questioned eagerly.

"At a warehouse on the edge of town," she replied.

"( _W)are(H)ouse_ _Edge."_

Realization dawned him.

* * *

Ally felt her violated body shake with fear as she dripped blood from everywhere. Using whatever energy she had left she raised her head to see him coming towards her.

"Having fun?" he laughed at her, "You're gonna be here for a long time, especially since that little boyfriend of yours is taking so long to find you. But, hey, I'm not complaining."

He crouched down next to her limp body on the floor and smirked, "I'm certainly enjoying myself."

"He will find me," she weakly said. He nodded, "Oh, I'm sure he will. I left him a hint for where we are. That motherfucker is so blinded by love that he will come straight here when he figures it out. What he doesn't know is, this will be the last place he ever sees."

"You're gonna kill him?" her voice wavered as her vision was blurring. "Both of you," he sneered, "Of course, I'll torture him by playing with you first."

She spat at him disgustedly. "You bitch!" he yelled before punching her again.

Ally screamed in pain as she was pulled by the rope around her hands to a corner. Her wounds burned as her naked, bleeding form dragged against the concrete ground.

"You never learn," he seethed as he tied her legs.

All she could do was close her eyes while he degraded her and pretend to be somewhere else.

* * *

 **I'm crying as I write this. I had no idea this would be so strong. I'm sorry if you find this disturbing. It won't be in this story again after this.**

 **I can't believe this chapter was mostly Austin talking to a cat about his feelings! But that cat is the reason he now knows where Ally is, so I'll forgive myself for that.**

 **Not updating until this chapter gets at least 5 reviews;)**


	38. Please Be Okay

**Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or any characters I didn't make up.**

* * *

Austin drove in maximum speed while agreeing on a plan with the rest through the phone almost crashing into a truck.

He turned his headlights brighter to be able to see as he reached the dark road that contained the warehouse. He felt nervous as he went deeper and deeper into this eerie, dangerous area.

After looking for the address he got from Candy's owners, he parked in front of the huge, abandoned warehouse that had his girlfriend trapped in.

He turned the car off and checked his gun for ammo before putting it back in its place tucked into his pants and covered by his shirt.

He texted Dez the code they agreed on before turning his phone off and getting out of the car.

The walk up to the front door was so dark he could barely see. He pushed the door open ignoring his nerves.

 _Please be okay, Alls._

* * *

The sound of the door opening and closing echoed through the room.

"Guess who's here?" Scott smirked at her before taking his gun off the table. Ally screamed in fear and jolted away as far as her restraints let her when he shot it in her direction.

Her body shook with wide eyes as she looked at the bullet now engraved into the wall.

"That'll tell him where you are," he smiled proudly before leaving the room.

Ally tried to free her hands from the rope only to fail before something caught her eyes.

Her shoe that had been pulled from her feet only days ago.

She looked up at the ropes holding her to see if they allowed her some movement. She sighed happily when she saw the cheap clock mounted on the wall exactly above her.

She struggled against her restraints to pull her body closer to the shoe. When she gave up on that, she got another idea.

She lied down her tied up hands stretched above her head in the direction of the wall and tried to get the shoe with her feet.

She felt sweat starting to drip from her body as she pulled even harder on the ropes almost dislocating her shoulders.

Finally, she got the shoe. She pulled herself back to the wall feeling her shoulders relax a bit and took the shoe in her hands from her feet.

She closed her eyes and threw it in the air aiming at the clock. When she heard a thud, she looked next to her to see that it didn't manage to hit the clock.

She panicked when she heard the sound of punches being thrown from outside.

 _He fell into Scott's trap._

Trying again, she threw the shoe even higher and sighed appreciatively when she heard the clock and the shoe collide.

She closed her eyes as the shards of glass from the now broken clock fell on her making her bleed again.

Ignoring the pain because of the scream she heard that she knew belonged to Austin, she grabbed the sharpest piece of glass and tried to cut the rope on her wrists off.

She hissed when the tip of it went into her flesh but kept trying. It was hard to cut the ropes holding her hands together using her hands with injuries all over her arms.

The rope started getting thinner and thinner as she jabbed the glass harder.

She gasped when the rope fell off her hands along with the piece of glass freeing her hands. She rubbed her wrists painfully before getting up and rushing out of the room.

"Austin! Austin!" she shouted as she ran across the halls in search of her savior.

She yelled in fear and tried to hit whoever pulled her into a vacant room.

"Ally! Ally! It's me!" Austin's voice broke her out of her trance.

She stopped to see him in front of her holding her arms to stop them from hitting him.

"Austin," she breathed out in relief to see him unharmed except for a busted lip.

His eyes widened as he took in her appearance. "Ally," he looked at her worriedly referring her to her wounds and cuts and bruises all over her naked form.

"We need to get out of here. He's gonna kill us both!" she warned.

"Not if I kill him first," he said pulling her behind him as he heard footsteps outside.

"What a cute reunion," Scott commented sarcastically as he casually strolled into the room with his gun pointed at them.

Austin took his gun out and aimed it at him before shooting.

"You couldn't even shoot me right! How can you think you can protect her then?!" he laughed when the bullet missed him by a few feet.

Austin growled as he tried to steady his shaking hand. "He can protect me better than you!" Ally yelled from behind her boyfriend.

"Everything I did was to help you," Scott seethed, "you were a spoiled brat."

"And hitting and raping me was the solution?!" she argued.

"I helped you get better! You wouldn't have survived if you were such a baby out there! And you pay me back by leaving me and going to the police."

"You broke me! I had to rebuild myself all over again because of you!" she yelled back.

"Still using that lie, bitch?" he spat.

"That's it!" Austin yelled before shooting him in the shoulder.

Suddenly, they heard a voice yell, "They're in here! I heard them!"

Scott held his bleeding shoulder and ran to the window in the room and escaped from it.

Ally couldn't follow him as Austin collapsed to the floor in front of her.

"Austin!" she exclaimed as she fell to her knees next to him.

Her eyes followed his hands to see them covered in blood on a wound.

 _He was shot._ Her eyes widened with tears as she pressed on it to stop the bleeding.

"Austin! Austin! Stay with me!" she yelled as tears flowed down her cheeks.

His eyes opened lazily as his breath slowed down even more.

"I can't," she sobbed, "I can't stop the bleeding!"

"It's okay," he whispered.

She looked at his pale face and cupped his cheeks before leaning to kiss him. Her hands smeared his blood on his face and hair as his lifted slightly to rest on her waist.

"Don't go," she cried as she pressed on his wound again.

His head dropped back and his hands fell limp next to him.

Ally looked at the door to see Elliot entering quickly. His eyes widened at the sight in front of him of a crying, injured, naked girl trying to stop her unconscious boyfriend's bleeding.

He rushed to her side taking off his jacket and putting it on her shoulders. She put her arms in the sleeves and zipped it up covering herself up.

"We need an ambulance!" he yelled out as he helped Ally add pressure to his wound.

Several police officers, Austin and Ally's parents, the girls, and the rest of the guys ran in.

Cassidy and her mom burst crying at Austin's state as her dad held them back from going to him.

Ally was pulled away as Austin was moved to a stretcher.

She was tackled in hugs by her parents. "Is he gonna be okay?" she asked through her tears as her dad held her.

"I don't know, sweetie," he fearfully admitted.

* * *

 **Not updating until this chapter gets at least 5 reviews.**


	39. Sore

**Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or any characters I didn't make up.**

* * *

Ally fiddled with her fingers as she sat on a chair next to his bed. She couldn't leave. He was too unstable for her to do anything other than watch him. They didn't know if he was going to make it. That alone made her tear up.

Her head pounded with lack of sleep. Her back hurt. Her injuries throbbed with pain.

Everything vanished when her worst fear came true. A long beep replaced the normal short beeps. She quickly looked at the monitor to see it. A flat line.

Ally screamed at the top of her lungs, "NO!" She rushed to his side sobbing and shouting. She was yanked away by nurses. She fought to be by his side again. She was pulled away from the room and dragged to the waiting room as she struggled against the nurse.

The last thing she saw of him was his body jerking up as they tried to resurrect him. She slumped to the floor crying as the sounds of their family and friends' sobs surrounded her.

* * *

 _Austin walked further into the dimly lit warehouse trying to figure out which of the hallways led to Ally. A gun being shot followed by Ally's scream made him run towards the farthest hallway leading to two doors._

 _He stood in front of one of them with other to his right side. Another hallway stood at his left. A fist came in contact with his cheek making him lose his balance and hit his head on the wall._

 _He held his head in pain and squinted at the figure ahead of him. "Look who decided to show up," Scott smiled._

" _Where is she?" he growled standing up clenching his fists. Scott nodded his head towards the door, "Not in there if that's what you're thinking."_

 _Austin lunged at him taking him to the ground throwing punches repeatedly at him. Scott managed to raise a foot between them and push him off his body by kicking him on his stomach._

 _Austin screamed in pain as he kicked his abdomen repeatedly. Grabbing hold of his foot he twisted it so Scott fell to the ground._

 _He got up and dragged him by the foot outside the hallway._

 _He stepped on his stomach and threatened, "If you don't let her go now, you're gonna wish I killed you."_

 _Scott smirked, "Go ahead then, torture me. Let's see if that helps you."_

 _Austin added more pressure to his abdomen. They heard footsteps and Ally yelling, "Austin! Austin!"_

 _He looked at Scott before struggling with him to get to her first. Austin grabbed his hair and slammed his head into the wall knocking him out._

 _He ran towards the hallway they heard her yells come from. He reached the end and look to his right, another hallway led to the one he was in previously, the one that led to his girlfriend._

 _He rushed to the hallway just in time to see her run past him. He grabbed her wrist and pulled her into the room next to him. She screamed and tried to push him away thinking he was her kidnapper._

" _Ally! Ally! It's me!" he shouted holding her arms tightly to avoid being hit._

 _She stopped and looked at him, "Austin."_

 _He scanned her bare form taking in all of her injuries, "Ally…"_

 _She looked at him warningly, "We need to get out of here. He's gonna kill us both!"_

 _Anger struck him, "Not if I kill him first." He heard footsteps coming up to the room. Protectively, he pulled her behind him just as Scott walked in with a gun._

" _What a cute reunion," he teased._

 _Shaking with irritation, Austin pulled out his gun and shot at him. Much to his displeasure, he missed._

" _You couldn't even shoot me right!" the bastard laughed, "How can you think you can protect her then?!"_

 _Austin cursed trying to steady his hands as Ally yelled from behind him, "He can protect me better than you!"_

 _His face got cold, "Everything I did was to help you. You were a spoiled brat." Austin's eyes narrowed clutching the gun even tighter._

" _And hitting and raping me was the solution?!" she fired back. Oh, hell no._

 _"I helped you get better! You wouldn't have survived if you were such a baby out there! And you pay me back by leaving me and going to the police."_

 _Austin was about to say something but kept quiet figuring Ally needed to get these things off her chest. "You broke me! I had to rebuild myself all over again because of you!" she shouted._

" _Still using that lie, bitch?" he spat._

 _That was the last straw with Austin as he yelled, "That's it!"_

 _His attempt to shoot Scott succeeded as his shoulder bled as proof._

 _Pain ran up Austin's spine as they heard a voice shout, "They're in here! I heard them!"_

 _The pain worsened making him fall to the floor as Scott held his wounded shoulder and escaped from the window._

 _He covered his wound with his hands with Ally on her knees next to him. "Austin!" she exclaimed her hands going to his injury pressing on it._

 _He felt tired and dizzy his eyes drooping. "Austin! Austin! Stay with me!" her voice brought him back. He opened his eyes slowly looking at her tears run down her beaten up but still beautiful face._

" _I can't," she cried more to herself than to him he supposed, "I can't stop the bleeding!" Using what's left of his energy, he whispered, "It's okay."_

 _She cupped his face and kissed him. He felt his blood smear all over his face and hair as his hands rested lightly on her waist._

 _His head fell back and blackness started taking over as she added pressure to his wound once again. "Don't go," her whimper faded away as his consciousness did._

Austin opened his eyes to a white ceiling and beeping machines. He felt a bandage wrapped around his abdomen press on his wound. He slowly turned his head to the side to see his girlfriend asleep hugging her knees to her chest.

Stitches took place on her forehead and a band aid on her cheek. Her black eye was still visible but healing. Other cuts and bruises were scattered across her body. Her right arm had stitches going up as well.

He turned his head to the other side to see his mom asleep too. She seemed to have been crying a lot, Ally wasn't much different either.

Ally gasped next to him making him sharply turn his head in worry. Her eyes were still closed but fear took over her features. "Please don't," she whimpered, "please don't."

Tears rolled down her cheeks as she started gasping for air. Her sobs woke his mom up. Mimi ran to his sleeping girlfriend shaking her, "Ally, wake up, sweetie. It's just a dream. It's just a dream."

With one final gasp, her eyes flew open taking in her surroundings. Mimi hugged her as she cried.

Austin watched as his mom consoled his girlfriend, none of them noticing him. "Ally? Mom?" he croaked out.

The two women did not expect to hear his voice. They froze then looked at him. His mom tackled him in a hug as tears of her own flooded her cheeks.

He wrapped the arm that didn't have the IV in it around her. "You're finally awake," she said between sobs.

He looked past his mom's shoulder to see Ally crying as she watched the scene in front of her. "Ally," he whispered. His mom let go of him saying, "I'll give you two some space. I'll go tell the others you're awake."

They waited until the door closed behind her before she lunged at him in a tight hug. "I'm so sorry," she sobbed.

"It's not your fault," he replied rubbing her back. He turned his head and kissed her to silence her sobs and protests. "Are you okay?" he asked as she placed her forehead on his. "I should be asking you that," she said her tears stopping.

"I'm fine. What about you? How are you feeling? What happened since then?" he tucked a lock of hair behind her ear.

"They caught him. The trial is in 3 weeks," she informed.

"That's good, but how are you feeling?" he repeated. She sat on the edge of the bed and looked down, "Sore."

"Aren't they giving you any painkillers?" he asked. She shook her head, "My injuries don't hurt as much as my emotions are. I don't think they have painkillers for that."

He grabbed her hand, "I'm really sorry, Alls. I'm here every step of the way for you."

She nodded before adding with a cracking voice, "You flat-lined. Twice." Realization dawned him, "Is that what hurts the most?"

"It's the freshest thing on my mind."

"I'm here now. I'm not going anywhere. It's gonna take a lot more than a psychotic bastard and a gunshot wound to get rid of me," he smiled attempting to change her mood.

It worked when she cracked a small smile.

"You okay now?" he questioned. She nodded before heading to the door, "I'm gonna go call the doctor." Her sudden exit made him suspicious. Ally wouldn't just leave like that.

Minutes later, tiredness took over making him fall asleep again.

* * *

 **I had to put Austin's view of the warehouse here to explain it more.**

 **I'm thinking of starting a sequel for this story. It's getting too long and I'm considering finishing the rest of the story in the sequel. Maybe one more chapter here before switching over to the new one to write the rest. What do you think?**

 **Not updating until this chapter gets at least 5 reviews.**


	40. Step By Step

**Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or any characters I didn't make up.**

* * *

"I'm sorry Mr. Moon, but your son is attracting too many people to this hospital who don't need medical help. It's disturbing all of the floors and crowding the halls. Paparazzi and reporters are hacking into the system to know more about him. It's not good for him or the hospital if he stays here. It would be better if he recovers at home peacefully," the doctor explained to Austin's parents, Cassidy, and Ally.

"What if something happens all of the sudden? How will we help him then?" Cassidy asked.

"Austin is recovering slower than expected, but he is stable. And if anything happens, we're always one phone call away."

Later that day, Austin was moved to an ambulance and transferred to his home with his parents riding with him. After being situated in his bed comfortably, his mom sat next to him while everyone else fitted themselves on either chairs or the floor.

Elliot walked in ending a phone call, "That was the producer. Your movie shooting has been postponed."

"What?" Austin sat up slightly, "Why didn't they just hire someone else?"

He shrugged and sat down next to Cassidy on the floor, "He refused. He said you were the perfect Luke for this movie, especially after the script change." Austin reluctantly nodded and lied back down.

"That's a good thing then," his mom said rubbing his shoulder, "You can focus on recovering and stop stressing."

"I am not stressing, Mom," he argued.

"Your doctor says otherwise," Cassidy spoke from her spot. "You're supposed to be on my side, Cass," he reminded her.

"I'm never on the wrong side," she smiled.

"Ally?" Ryder asked the girl he's been watching lost in her thoughts in the corner of the room.

"Hm?" she looked up quickly. "Are you okay?" he asked carefully as if she would blow up at his question.

"You look exhausted. Why don't you go catch up on sleep?" Austin's dad advised. Ally shook her head, "I just need some air."

She got up and left the room. Heading to the kitchen, she prepared a cup of coffee, the only thing helping her avoid sleep. Dez came in and started fumbling in the medicine drawer.

"Pain killers?" she asked taking a sip. He nodded giving up, "He did too much today." Which was true. He went from lying in the hospital bed all day to be being moved to an ambulance then up his stairs then his bed. "They're in the living room in his bag. And take his antibiotics with you," she said.

On his way out, he stopped and looked at her, "When are you gonna quit this addiction with coffee?"

She sighed, "You know why I drink it, Dez."

"I do, but why don't you talk to someone about it? Maybe it'll help."

"I can't talk to a psychiatrist about this," she looked at him sadly.

"I didn't mean a shrink. We're all here for you. Austin especially. He worries about you," Dez said.

Ally felt a pang of guilt in her chest, "You mean I'm the reason he's stressing?" He shook his head, "No. Not the only reason at least."

"I'm not ready to talk about it," she admitted. "But will you be someday?" he asked. She nodded confidently and he left.

She took her cup and went to the backyard. She sat on the grass and looked at the setting sun.

It was decided that Ally would sell her house and move in with Austin. It was safer for her and better for his health if they had someone with them at all times. Austin refused anyone but her move in with him.

She did tell him that she'd sleep in a separate room though. She wasn't exactly comfortable with any physical contact with any male around her. Her nightmares and kidnapping keep flashing in front of her eyes even when she brushes against the guys or Austin accidentally when she walks past them.

For several days after Austin woke up, he had an infection in his wound. 2 days in with that infection, he weakly said goodbye to all of them and passed out. Thankfully medication kicked in and he was saved. It was a really hard time on all of them seeing his pale body sweat and shiver. He was still infected, which meant fevers, increased pain, no appetite, constant tiredness, and headaches, but he had a good day today. He was able to talk comfortably without getting tired and did not have a fever, a good sign meaning he was getting better. He only had pain and discomfort, which they all blamed on the move from the hospital.

The trial was in 3 days. She would come face to face with her ex-boyfriend hopefully for only one last time. He had his ways to get away with his mistakes, and Ally could only hope there was enough evidence to lock him up.

 _2am…_

Everyone went home hours earlier. Ally was sitting on the couch in the corner of the room fighting sleep. She had succeeded in that task in the previous days by, again, coffee, but they ran out of it. The cup she had during the day wore off.

Austin groaned from his place in the bed. "Are you okay?" she asked quietly in worry. He had complained of throbbing pain in his wound and a severe headache before sleep.

"Come to bed," he replied, "you're exhausted."

"Did you sleep?" she said instead of answering him. "A little. Now come to bed and sleep," he demanded.

"Austin," she begged quietly.

"I know you have nightmares, but you're gonna die if you don't rest. Coffee can only keep you awake for so long," she heard his voice in the dark.

"I can't go to bed because you might need something. I shouldn't be in another room when you're hurt and alone," she said.

"There is a bed in this room, you know," he said. Taking her silence as an answer he added, "We don't have to be close. We can sleep in separate sides. I won't do anything."

As much as she wanted to refuse, her exhaustion dragged her to the bed and she lied down under the blanket. Sleep almost immediately took over her.

* * *

 _Ally's body was pushed against the concrete floor roughly as he straddled her hips in anger. "You little bitch," he seethed in her face as he tore at her shirt. She shook with fear and mumbled, "No, please, no."_

 _She looked to her right to see Austin lying in a pool of his own blood staring at her with cold, empty eyes. "This is your fault," he croaked out with blood._

 _She looked back above her just as he spat, "This is your fault." She screamed with pain and fear hoping someone would save her._

" _This is your fault!" she heard Mimi's sobs in her head. "We were all fine without you!" Cassidy added._

 _Scott lifted his hand and punched her jaw. He grabbed her arms and dug his nails into her skin, "This is your fault." His hands wrapped tightly around her neck choking her. "You don't deserve to live," she heard Mike's voice as she struggled to breathe._

Ally screamed and jolted up in bed. Austin woke up and sat up abruptly in fear. "Argh!" he cringed holding his wound as he felt pain from his sharp movement.

"Oh my God," Ally gasped as she turned to him before standing to run to the kitchen, "I'm so sorry. I'll go get the pain meds. Just wait-" His hand reached out and grabbed her wrist halting her in her tracks. A wave of fear and panic shot through his touch and she yanked her hand from his grasp.

He looked at her confusedly before realizing why she did it as she held her wrist tightly in front of her chest. She caught a glimpse of sadness on his features dimly lit by the rising sun coming through the curtain.

"I-I'm sorry. I didn't mean to…" he stammered. "It's not bleeding is it?" she asked nervously from her spot. "No, no. What happened?" he questioned as she sat on the edge of the bed.

"The usual," she said, "I'm not going back to sleep after that."

"What was it about this time?"

"I don't want to talk about it," she trailed off looking down.

"When will you be ready to talk?" he asked.

"Not now," she whispered disappointedly. She got up and headed for the door, "Go back to sleep."

 _2 hours later…_

Ally hugged her knees tighter to her chest as she stared at the backyard from the bay window located at the end of the hall. She kept herself awake by watching the birds fly over the trees.

The sound of a door opening startled her. Austin emerged out of his room. He held the wall next to him for help to slowly make his way to her. His other hand held his wound over his shirt.

"Austin, get back-" she stood up to help him back to his bed. "Sit," he ordered. Something in his tone made her reluctantly sit back down.

He let out a breath when he made it to the bay window seat and sat down carefully. "You should be in bed," she said immediately noticing the slight pain in his eyes.

"And you should be happy," he fired back.

She turned her attention back to the backyard looking out. He did the same, and they sat in silence for a while. Ally wondered if this is all he wanted to do. Look out the window in silence.

"I miss you," he said quietly breaking the silence.

"I'm right here," she chuckled humorlessly.

"No, you're not. You're so distant from me. I know you're hurting. I know you're reliving that day over and over every day. I know the guilt is eating you up inside out. I hate seeing you like this. I hate that you think you can't talk to me. I'm here for you. I'm always here. And I want to help you. I love you, you know that didn't change," he looked at her softly.

"I know," she swallowed, "but you shouldn't."

"What? Why?" he asked confusedly.

"Ever since I came into your life, nothing but bad has happened. I'm the reason you got shot. I'm the reason you almost died. You were the one who was in pain for days and yet I'm the one here acting all hurt and broken."

"First, if you didn't come into my life, I would still be an alcoholic asshole. Second, you were in pain for days too, not just me, and you have the right to feel more pain," he said.

"If it wasn't for me, you wouldn't have had to risk your life to save me," she sighed.

"If it wasn't for me, you'd still be held hostage by him. So let's say you owe me a favor because I saved you. Let go of the guilt and doubt you have in your head because it shouldn't be there," he smiled.

She cracked a small smile, "How did we ever get together?"

"To The Moon and Back, remember?" he reminded her.

"To The Moon and Back," she smiled at the memories.

"Are you ready now to start talking to me again?" he asked.

"Step by step," she nodded.

"I'll take what I can get," he chuckled.

"Wait," he said all of the sudden, "Isn't the trial in 2 days?"

"Yeah," she replied. "Are you prepared to face him again?" he asked carefully.

"You and the rest of the group will be there, won't you?" she spoke confidently.

"We have to," he laughed, "we're eyewitnesses. But that doesn't mean we're not there for you too."

She rolled her eyes with a laugh. "That's the first genuine laugh I've had in days," she smiled.

"Well, then I have served my purpose," he got up holding the wall, "I need to go back to bed. This sitting up is painful. Wanna join me?"

She raised her eyebrows at his suggestive expression, "Step by step, Moon."

He laughed, "Was worth a shot."

For the first time in so long, she felt the pain inside her decrease a little. But the moment he shut the door behind him, everything she was feeling earlier came back again.

* * *

 **I have been trying to update for so long now. School started 2 week ago so I'm so busy studying and preparing my studies. Freshman year is not as easy as they made it sound.**

 **The rest of the story will be uploaded in the sequel, Sing It Out. I will try to update soon and put the new story up, but it might take longer than usual. Look out for the sequel, coming soon!**

 **(Soon not meaning longer than 2 weeks.)**

 **However, the sequel won't be up if this chapter does not get at least 5 reviews! If you want the sequel, review!**


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